JONO Organ, co‑founder of the registered charity Life After Lary (1215969) and one of the UK’s leading voices for patient‑led recovery, has been shortlisted for the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT) Awards 2026 in the category Championing the Value and Impact of Speech and Language Therapy.
Jono is widely recognised for his work across national healthcare, research, education, and patient advocacy. Alongside co-founding the charity Life After Lary, he speaks regularly to patient groups, hospitals, universities, clinicians, and students, using lived experience to deepen understanding of communication recovery after life‑changing airway surgery.
He serves very proudly as Co‑Chair of the North Thames Genomic Medicine Patient Panel and Co‑Chair of the Genomics Health Hub, contributing patient insight to research, clinical practice, and future care pathways. He is also an elected Governor at The Royal Marsden Cancer Hospital, a member of the Biomedical Research Centre for Cancer, and a Lay Specialist for NICE on robotic‑assisted surgery, as well as several other roles.
His shortlisting places him alongside leading clinicians, researchers, and innovators from across the UK — a moment he describes as profoundly meaningful.
He said:
“I’ll be standing in a room with some of the greatest speech and language therapists in the UK — leaders, innovators, clinicians who change lives every single day. And I’m not a clinician. I’m a patient. A survivor. A voice rebuilt through their skill, their compassion, and their belief that communication is worth fighting for.”
Speech and language therapy plays a critical role in recovery for people who undergo life‑changing airway surgery, yet public awareness of its impact remains limited. Organ’s nomination highlights a growing national recognition of communication rehabilitation, patient‑clinician partnership, and the importance of ensuring equitable access to specialist support across the UK.
Life After Lary supports people living with a laryngectomy or neck stoma, offering peer‑driven guidance, community connection, and advocacy shaped entirely by lived experience. The charity has become a national voice for recovery after voice‑box surgery, working with hospitals, universities, and patient groups to ensure no one faces the journey alone. Today, Life After Lary supports more than 3,000 patients and families across the UK, Ireland and the Channel Islands, working closely with NHS teams, clinicians, and researchers to improve outcomes and raise national awareness of life after laryngectomy.
He said:
“This nomination shows something powerful: that lived experience has a place at the table. That our stories matter. That what we’ve built together through Life After Lary is being recognised at the highest level.”
A spokesperson for Life After Lary added:
“Jono’s nomination reflects the heart of our mission — ensuring that every patient’s voice is heard, valued, and represented. His advocacy has opened doors for thousands of people navigating life after laryngectomy, and we are proud to see this work recognised at a national level.”
Jono emphasises that the achievement belongs to the entire community:
“I’m not walking into that room alone. I’m taking our whole community with me — every member, every family, every therapist who’s stood beside us, every person who’s ever felt the fear of losing their voice and the courage of finding it again. This shortlisting isn’t mine. It’s ours. It proves that when patients and clinicians stand side by side, we can change the future of recovery, support, and communication.”
The RCSLT Awards 2026 will take place on Thursday 19 November at London Zoo, celebrating excellence in communication care, research, advocacy, and patient partnership.