Knitting in the Hospital: A Proposal from a Woman in Malaga to Ease the Wait of Cancer Treatments

Inma Molina received her first harsh blow in March 2023: breast cancer. She then drew on admirable strength and a wide smile to cope with the onslaught of the disease. She overcame it. Like a champ. But in January of this year, she suffered a recurrence, and once again, she was forced to piece together the puzzle of chemotherapy, medical tests, waiting for results, and long downtimes at the Clinical University Hospital Virgen de la Victoria in Málaga. "It sucks," she admits frankly. In this second chapter, while waiting for an appointment with her oncologist one day, she became absorbed seeing the calm of a woman knitting in the waiting room, focused on her stitches, oblivious to her phone and the bustle of the hospital. "One afternoon, as I was stuck in a loop waiting for results, unable to do anything, I remembered her. I went down to the bazaar for a couple of needles and a ball of wool. That night I made my first stitches, and what happiness it brought me," explains this woman from Málaga who aims to bring this practice to the waiting and treatment rooms of hospitals in Málaga through her initiative 'Cancer and Knitting'.

After those first stitches, this high school teacher and mother of two elementary school children—José and Julián—set up an Instagram profile (@cancerypunto) with the original idea of sharing her creations and the progress of her treatment until her recovery. By then, an internal light bulb had turned on. She saw it clearly: What if wool and needles were offered as an accompanying activity for oncology patients and their families? She then thought that not much investment was required and that the practice entailed "many benefits." All were advantages in her head.

"I believe that knitting makes those moments more bearable, and you might even come to see those waits as a moment for yourself," reflects this 44-year-old woman from Málaga. "When you have chemo or tests, you don't really get into the book you bring. Reading requires intellectual effort that, perhaps, is difficult at certain times related to cancer. Knitting, on the other hand, is mechanical: you escape and, moreover, you create something for yourself or to give away," she adds. Her wish is for patients to experience "some peace and tranquility" while waiting by engaging in an activity that also evokes, explains Inma, tradition and connection with the past: "Our grandmothers used to knit wool or crochet, it's part of our ancestors and at the same time remains very current," she defends.

Said and done. She rolled up her sleeves to get to work. Call after call, meeting after meeting, post after post on social networks, the project soon took shape in collaboration with authorized associations to act in hospital settings. In Antequera, the initiative has already started with Corazones Solidarios, a non-profit collective that carries out health promotion and solidarity activities in favor of patients and their families. "We hope to offer the initiative in the Comarcal there soon, they have already approved it," insists an excited Molina who has also held several meetings with the Malaga Foundation for Assistance to Cancer Patients (FMAEC), an entity that has been working for years in psychological support and accompaniment for oncology patients and their families in the Clínico, where they handle her case and where some envelopes have also started to arrive. "I have also been contacted by other hospitals to which I have to send the project."

The hospital in Antequera will be the first to receive what she calls "craft envelopes" that will be offered free of charge to patients who wish to try knitting. She already has many of them ready to deliver. "Inside that envelope, there are needles, a ball of wool and thread, as well as a simple pattern to follow. Also, a letter explaining the initiative and a QR code that leads to the Cancer and Knitting website, which my husband made, where video tutorials are offered for beginners," she relates excitedly.

The initiative uses knitting materials donated anonymously by users who have contacted her through social media. The initiator clarifies that there is no financial purpose beyond providing comfort and lending a hand to oncology patients. And, incidentally, also to promote this ancient technique, fostering its value as a creative, therapeutic, and social activity. In fact, the project has a large group of volunteer knitters eager to teach knitting. The second weekend of June, coinciding with the celebration of World Knitting in Public Day, Inma advances, they are considering the possibility of doing some action to give prominence to balls of wool and needles. "The response with Cancer and Knitting has been wonderful, I have met people determined to help others," she concludes satisfied.