For a few weeks now we have been supporting the Berlin project "Initiative Rosi", Which is being implemented in the Charité. With this project, the initiators Prof. Jalid Sehouli and Tina Müller are committed to enabling women suffering from cancer to have a more respectful and colorful everyday life during chemotherapy. The aim is to collect enough money through donations to redesign the therapy rooms in the women's clinic at the Charité Berlin in such a way that the stressful and exhausting treatments are offset nicely. Among other things, a crowdfunding campaign enabled already existing measures “such as B. the light and fragrance concept "are financed.
We at Wholey see it as our duty to contribute to the project in view of the severity of the fight against cancer and out of respect for those affected. For us, "sustainability" also means "social sustainability" and responsibility. Even if it only contributes a small amount, we are happy to be able to offer our smoothies to patients (and employees) free of charge with a Wholey freezer on site, thus contributing to a balanced diet and possible strengthening during chemotherapy .
To give you an exact overview of what the Initiative Rosi still determine how you can get involved and what successes the project has already achieved, we conducted an interview with the chief physician Prof. Jalid Sehouli:
Doctor Sehouli, why don't you introduce the Rosi project to us, what exactly is it about?
Cancer therapies need time, they take time from our patients: inside and that is why we want to equip the living spaces, especially the therapy rooms, with more life and joie de vivre and beautify the time, which is why our Rosi project.
Who is Rosi, or how did the name of the initiative come about?
A few years ago the daughter of a patient came to see me. The patient, Rosi Müller, had breast cancer and the daughter accompanied her to chemotherapy, which was great. Unfortunately, the patient died, but her daughter Tina Müller came to me and asked: "Professor, can't we make the rooms of the cancer treatment rooms more livable, more fun?" Nobody has ever asked me whether we have our patients' therapy time in mind. This was the starting point for the Rosi project. We want to achieve exactly that, so that the treatment time is not wasted, but also filled with content and provided with other framework conditions. That's why I'm so grateful. A lot of good and important things in our life begin with conversations like this, like the one with Tina Müller.
Last year you raised a considerable amount in a crowdfunding campaign. How has the money been used so far, what has happened on the premises over the past year?
Thanks to the great support of many patients, relatives and employees, but also from celebrities, we have actually managed to mobilize a lot of strength that benefits precisely these visions and helps to beautify the premises. We installed scent installations and attached paintings. Fortunately, thanks to a donation, we have received fruit for the patients, which we can offer them daily during therapy and we have changed a lot of the spatial structure, made rooms more colorful, and are now in the process of breaking through rooms, because space, fresh air and breathing are also very important. I am especially proud that we have now got these things off the ground.
What is the response from the affected women who are treated here?
I think that it is very important for women who have cancer that they are perceived as human beings, as a holistic person, and that they are not degraded to the patient with ovarian or cervical cancer. It should also be made aware that what the women are going through here in an incredible way requires strength, energy, but also mindfulness and that's why I think that the change of perspective is necessary not only for us at the Charité, but for the entire world . We should approach the patients with respect and humility who have to go through this difficult illness with all its negative effects.
How does diet play a role in treating cancer patients?
Whenever a cancer is diagnosed, the question naturally arises, what did I do wrong and what can I do to make me feel better in the future, and where my diet plays a major role. We know that we are not careful enough about nutrition. Because the food chases us - and not as before, we the food. For example, we often eat too unconsciously. That is precisely why nutrition is an important topic for me and we have also hired our own ecotrophologist for this purpose, because we have established that nutrition is an important prognostic marker. In addition, many women are open to restructuring their diet.
In general, however, it can be said that no special cancer diet is necessary. However, it can be said that anything that is good for the cardiovascular system is bad for cancer cells. So you have to see what is healthy? And we all know that we all eat too much meat, fat and sugar. In the illness there can also be a chance to deal with the topic of nutrition in a structured manner. Therefore we are of course very grateful for the great donation from Wholey. The smoothies taste delicious, but you still have the feeling that they are healthy. I think something is always “healthy” when it tastes delicious and secondly, it prevents the body from getting tired. I think harnessing the power of nature is just the right approach to get even closer to the WHO definition of health - physical, mental and social wellbeing. And so I am more than grateful for this support.
What do you think, if and how the Wholey smoothies can contribute to a healthy diet?
Of course, there are many frameworks that contribute to a healthy life. However, nutrition is always a topic of conversation, as patients naturally want to change something and improve their health. You have to realize that nutrition affects the whole body. After all, 99% of the body's cells are still healthy when you have cancer. So you should eat in such a way that the heart is happy, the liver is happy, the kidneys are happy, but the soul is also happy. Basically, we eat too much, eat too unconsciously and often do not know what exactly we are eating, or there is no longer what we want. Therefore, I find Wholey's concept of shock freezing immediately after the harvest to be exactly the right approach, as we know that substances that trap free radicals in the body and thus prevent cancer are preserved in this way. The same applies to the taste, which is also retained. Thirdly, I think it's great that with Wholey you can really see what's inside. In principle, there is no such thing as THE cancer diet, but I think a diet based on fresh fruit and vegetables is a very good approach.
How can you continue to support the Rosi initiative?
The medical system is designed to keep an eye out for deficits, and so are hospitals. They are very purpose-oriented and structured in a very process-optimized manner. I think that especially people who are in the situation of cancer therapy need the spatial changes. The white is perhaps effective when it comes to identifying soiling, but for us it is about colors, spatial structures, volume, but it is also about patients being able to communicate better with one another, but also to be able to set themselves apart. That is why we continue to need sustained support. We are grateful for any support.
We will soon start with readings that will take place in the cancer therapy rooms, as many patients are too tired to read for themselves. So we invite writers to read something to patients here. This then includes world literature such as Dr. Zhivago etc. We also need further financial resources to achieve these structural changes. We have to break through the walls. We have to change the light. Because here there is also an influence on the immune system. So how much light comes to us or how natural materials touch us is also decisive. Of course, you need enormous economic resources that are usually not covered by health insurances. We therefore want to use this clinic to achieve this change of perspective not only for Germany, but for the whole world.
And last but not least, what's your favorite smoothie?
I myself drink cranberry juice every day, every evening, so I have a great preference for red berries. That's why the Ban & Berries is my favorite smoothie.
Learn more / Sources:
https://frauenklinik.charite.de/ueber_die_frauenkliniken/initiative_rosi
https://www.eanu.de/post/initiative-rosi-für-besseren-therapieraum-an-der-charité-gestartet
