Anna Jenkins
Cancer will change you
I was cycling from one end of Britain to the other in the summer of ‘04, for the second time, only this time I only got half way.
As I reached the Lake District in the pouring rain, I finally had to admit to myself that something was wrong. The following day I was home, grateful of my home comforts. My health went down hill quickly, I was having problems eating and even breathing.
It was discovered that I had a tumour that had taken over the left side of my body; it had either squashed or pushed all organs to the right hand side.
Luckily I was referred to The Royal Marsden and in the November I had the tumour, along with my left kidney and spleen, removed.
Two weeks after the operation I was back on the bike just for a short ride and at Christmas back in the Lake District. We had driven up for a walking holiday with friends and on the drive home I made up my mind not only to have chemotherapy, but to hold a fundraising event as a thank you to The Royal Marsden.
My journey with chemotherapy started late January 05. When I arrived the nurses said I looked more like an intrepid explorer than a cancer patient.
With the chemotherapy and nausea came the menopause and night sweats. looking on the bright side, the journey also brought me closer to friends, no guilt retail therapy and time off work.
I raised an extraordinary amount for The Royal Marsden but being back at work was a struggle. A year later the cancer was back. Under the care of The Royal Marsden in the autumn of 06 the second tumour along with part of my stomach and pancreas were removed.
After a year at work, I was given retirement due to ill health which I welcomed with open arms. I had found new interests in patchwork and quilting, my first quilt raised £600 for The Royal Marsden.
It is nearly two years since the last operation; cancer has given me a new life which I fully enjoy. Don’t under estimate how long it will take to recover and it will change you but there is life after cancer and it can be a good one.
