By Melissa Jackson
BBC News Online health staff |
 Sister Christiane Lehair enjoys the challenge of her job |
Modesty is something that Sister Christiane Lehair has in bagfuls, under-playing the importance of her new role as the first chaplain to be appointed by Macmillan Cancer Relief. While doctors look after the medical care of cancer patients, Sister Lehair is dedicated to their spiritual needs.
She works at London's Guy's and St Thomas' hospital trust and spends her time giving patients spiritual support.
The charity sees her work as an extension of the help it gives patients throughout their treatment and care.
Sister Lehair trained as a nurse in France, where she was born 45 years ago.
After three years working as a nurse in Strasbourg, she took an ecumenical course and later joined the Sisters of St Andrew as a Roman Catholic nun.
She came to England in 1996 and joined Guy's and St Thomas' as a chaplain a few months after arriving. She has been there ever since and is now enjoying her role as Macmillan's first palliative and supportive care chaplain.
Patients are her first concern but she opens her arms to their family and their carers and to staff who work with these patients.
She said: "I am there for people who need to try to make sense of what is happening to them.
"Cancer causes changes and a lot of anxiety, it is really something that brings about a lot of questions about what you believe.
"In our daily life, we don't often think a lot about what life is all about.
"But when you are seriously ill you do."
Challenging questions
She finds herself having to deal with questions from patients such as "Why me?" and "Why has God let me down?".
A lot of the time she just listens to patients, but gives guidance where she can.
"I provide a space for people to question things," she says.
It is not an easy task.
"There are questions often where people have to find an answer and I can't always give the answer.
"If I don't know what to say, I think it's better not to say anything."
The people Sister Lehair meets can be religious, some from different faiths and others who are non-believers but in need of some spiritual comfort.
And she does not work exclusively with cancer patients.
She is part of the hospitals' palliative care team which tries to improve the quality of life of individuals with terminal illness. "I enjoy what I do and I find my job is very meaningful," she said.
Macmillan's appointment coincides with recent guidelines on supportive and palliative care published by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE), which place an emphasis on spiritual care giving.
Dame Gill Oliver, Macmillan's director of service development, says: "Although spiritual care is recognised as one of the key components of palliative care it is the least developed area.
"Sister Lehair's appointment marks an important step towards recognising the spiritual needs of cancer patients."
And in Sister Lehair, those needs are in a safe pair of hands.
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I am there for people who need to try to make sense of what is happening to theme 
