Patient stories

“The difficulty of it was, I went through all of that, and it didn’t work.”

“It was very hard for my daughters. Initially, they were scared, and they couldn’t accept it.”

“I didn’t know what she wanted to talk about. And then she gave me eight weeks to live.”

“I’ve got amazing friends and family – they’ve all been there when I’ve needed them… And sometimes just being there is the best thing they can do.”

"He was OK for a couple of years before it started to rear its head again. That's when they offered him the first clinical trial."

"When you hear the word 'cancer', you just think you're not going to live anymore."

"I’ve had to rebuild myself in the past and I’m doing it again now. I know I can do it.”

“My doctor gave us the news, and…everything just felt really hollow. It was a big shock.”

‘What’s your life expectancy now Mum?’ And I said, ‘Same as yours Lucy. Exactly the same as yours.’

“The doctor said, ‘This might hurt, yell if you wish’, and my wife Janet said my language was very colourful!”

What could she have done differently? What if her doctor had caught it sooner? “But, those types of questions are unhelpful to ask yourself after you’ve already been diagnosed.” 

Looking back, Hine knows that she could have approached her diagnosis differently. But she is happy with her life, and she is grateful for it.