A Day in the Life: Bethany Colton - CAR-T CNS 

A Day in the Life: Bethany Colton - CAR-T CNS 

We are continuing to hear from some of our region’s amazing clinical nurse specialists (CNS), and the fantastic work they do. Bethany Colton is a CAR-T CNS, and she tells us what she loves about the role and what a day in the life looks like as a CNS. 

What does a typical day look like to you?  

Providing support to patients undergoing CAR-T therapy. In CAR-T cell therapies, T cells are taken from the patient's blood and are changed in the lab by adding a gene for a receptor (called a chimeric antigen receptor or CAR), which helps the T cells attach to a specific cancer cell antigen. The CAR-T cells are then given back to the patient. I am involved in the patient journey from their first appointment, T cell apheresis (removal), infusion and post-care. I also work with the wider MDT (Multi-disciplinary Team) and the manufacturing companies involved in CAR-T. 

As a new service, a large part of the role has been to provide education to the haematology team caring for this patient group. CAR-T has unique side effects and I have been involved in creating learning materials, SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures) and study days to ensure this new service runs smoothly.

What led you to work in this role?   

I was originally a clinical educator, and I was helping to implement the teaching for CAR-T therapy. I started to fall in love with the idea of giving specialist care to a patient group. CAR-T is so innovative and exciting, and I was very attracted to the idea of being part of a new service and implementing it from the beginning. 

In what way do you work alongside other staff or teams within South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw 

As the CAR-T CNS, I chair a CAR-T MDT meeting once a week. This includes the intensive care team, palliative care, medics, students, and co-ordinators. We work down our list of current patients, and we see where the patients can benefit from our individual services.  

What excites you most about your role? 

It is such a new therapy within haematology, it is very exciting to be involved from the offset. It also offers a treatment option to patients where there wasn’t one before. It is so lovely to be a part of the patient's journey the entire way through their pathway.

Are there any personal or team achievements or highlights you’re most proud of?

I presented a poster at the European Bone Marrow and Transplant annual meeting in Paris. The poster was about how we had taken an interprofessional approach to education around CAR-T therapy.

In what way do patients or the public influence the work you do?

We continually ask for feedback on how we could improve our CAR-T service and appreciate it when patients inform of us what went well and what could be better.

Looking ahead, what do you hope to achieve in the future within your role?

I would love to continue to grow the service and to provide CAR-T therapy to as many eligible patients as possible. I want to continue to educate all staff to ensure they feel confident to care for this complex patient group.