SCORES of shoppers found themselves cut off from the world as they took part in an innovative awareness campaign.

Macmillan Cancer Support installed an experimental isolation box in Churchill Square to highlight the situation of people in Sussex affected by cancer who have experienced loneliness.

The box allows people to see in but stops the person inside seeing out and it aims to evoke the same feelings of loneliness and isolation many people experience.

Those using the box were also given headphones to listen to the stories and experiences of two cancer patients.

Emma McMahon, 28, form Horsham, said going into the box was a disorientating experience.

She said: "It was very strange to go from a busy and noisy shopping centre into a completely cut off environment.

“You couldn’t hear anything except the patient’s voices and it was very difficult to see out – it was very disorientating.

“It was very powerful and emotional experience and it had a strong affect on me. Listening to the stories brought a tear to my eye.

“You could really understand just how isolated people must feel. It has certainly made me stop and think about how I might approach helping other people who may be diagnosed in the future.”

Sixty-four-year-old John O’Sullivan from Hove was diagnosed with cancer of the neck in September 2011 and his was one of the stories shoppers heard.

He said: “I was so shocked and numbed by what I had just heard that all I wanted was to be able to talk to someone who knew how I felt and could guide and possibly advise me through my forthcoming treatment path.

“There was nobody to talk to who really knew how I felt. Even though I was exceptionally lucky to have the fullest support from my lovely wife, daughters and a few special friends, I still felt in total isolation.”

The isolation box is part of the charity’s #NotAlone campaign.

Macmillan Cancer Support senior development manager Rebecca Hawkins said: “We know only too well that loneliness can have a devastating impact on people’s lives.

“Quite often friends and family find it hard to understand what someone is going through and how utterly lonely a cancer diagnosis can make them feel.

“With 2.5 million people in the UK now living with cancer we currently can’t be there for everyone who needs us. And until we can, we are calling on people to reach out to someone affected by cancer today. Even the smallest gesture of kindness can make a massive difference.”