Honouring Teresa Young: hidden hero of acupuncture

That woman was Teresa Young; we could not foresee that we would work closely together for the next 25 years, forging a truly creative relationship.

To mark Teresa’s retirement in June 2024 I wish to honour her amazing contribution to acupuncture research in the supportive care of people with cancer. I would nominate her for a BAcC fellowship, but she is not an acupuncturist. Yet she is one of the great contributors to our profession.

For 25 years, she has supported my career as research acupuncturist in the NHS. She has been an enabler, a facilitator, a finder of funding. Her work and her contribution are worthy of honouring, and what better place than in Acu., as it celebrates the process of transformation and growth.

Soon after joining the LJMC in May 1999, I found myself working with ‘scary’ Teresa. My desire to introduce an acupuncture service for cancer patients at the Centre was met with concerns about a ‘lay’ person delivering an ‘invasive intervention’. Dr Jane Maher, the medical director, responded to my persistence by stipulating that evaluation was the first step to introducing a service. Thus began my career as a researcher.

Teresa was coordinator for the Supportive Oncology Research Team (SORT), the research unit of the LJMC. She guided me, a complete research novice, through the process of setting up my first research study – evaluating acupuncture in the management of breast cancer treatment-related hot flushes in women taking tamoxifen. I will never forget the shared excitement when she announced the results of her analysis of our data – ‘it worked’ was her slightly surprised, yet pleased, pronouncement.

That led to our second study, this time using the NADA protocol. Expressing reluctance about using a standardised protocol, I was quietly reminded by Teresa that research is about investigating challenging concepts.

At this time, she also supported my desire to do a PhD. Her support throughout this demanding process was invaluable; she patiently explained – and re-explained! – the statistical concepts I found difficult to grasp. She facilitated my developing the skills required of a well-rounded researcher, encouraging me to attend and present at conferences, supporting me in developing presentations, posters, and publications. Later, her encouragement to develop my leadership skills led me to take on the role of chair of the British Lymphology Society Scientific Committee.

Teresa worked hard to ensure funds were available. Attaining my PhD coincided with the introduction of Agenda for Change in the NHS, and I discovered that she had taken care to ensure my status as a highly qualified researcher was reflected in an NHS band and level commensurate with those skills.

Our relationship developed over 25 years. It was not always plain sailing – there were often strains, and differences of approach and opinion. As Teresa tactfully remarked recently ‘we’ve had lots of interesting discussions’. We are chalk and cheese; her calm objectivity balances my mercurial temperament. Our relationship weathered – and was forged through – our shared vision, persistence, and commitment to improving supportive care for people with cancer.

As my manager for 20 years, Teresa was always fair and flexible. Her amazing ‘can do’ attitude is essential for navigating the complexities of the NHS and of research. Teresa never dismissed my ideas; her only cautionary remark would be ‘do you have time to do this?’ My annual appraisals saw us trawling through seemingly endless lists of projects I wanted to do, with her gently reining me in. She kept me going; there were times when I was ready to throw away my research career – she always had a way of bringing me back in. She knew my strengths, and more importantly, my weaknesses.

Teresa is not a user of acupuncture, yet she spent 25 years facilitating research into acupuncture. She made a space for me to flourish. Together we published many papers, and recently commemorated our achievements in a joint article ‘Lessons Learned During 20 years of Acupuncture Research’, which appeared in EJOM.

I shall miss her terribly! Not only as a colleague and source of support and inspiration, but as the amazing human being she is – full of fun, fairness, humour, kindness, not to forget gourmet cooking skills… and her wonderful ability to go for things in life.

I am so very lucky to have worked with that ‘scary woman’ from my initial interview. And the acupuncture profession has been lucky as well. Thank you, Teresa, for all you have done.

Beverley de Valois PhD LicAc FBAcC has been a proud fellow of the BAcC since 2011. In May 2024, she celebrated 25 years since qualifying as an acupuncturist, and of working at Mount Vernon Cancer Centre. She is an honorary research fellow at the University of Bristol, past chair of the British Lymphology Society Scientific Committee, and a committee member of the British Society for Integrative Oncology. She is author of Acupuncture and Cancer Survivorship: Recovery, Renewal, and Transformation.