I was informed that I had pseudomyxoma perintonei (the nurse had to write it down for me) and they were referring me to The Christie specialist cancer hospital in Manchester.
Late in 2020, I went to A&E with stomach pains. I had a CT scan which showed a mass in my pelvic cavity the size of a grapefruit.
In 2021, in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, I had cytoreductive surgery and HIPEC at the Basingstoke and North Hampshire hospital.
Cancer52 has launched a survey to understand how the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic is impacting our community.
For me, it all started with blood in my urine and an increase in the size of my stomach. In retrospect, I could feel the mucin moving when I walked. Now I’m on ‘watch and wait’.
As I came to terms with the news, I understood that it would be important for me to get as fit as I could to face such an invasive operation ominously dubbed the “The Mother of all Surgeries” or MOAS.
My first event was on a conference stand in Paris for two days, when I tried very hard to avoid saying “pseudomyxoma” as I did not know how to pronounce it!
I was more than happy to become a volunteer admin, remembering how important I found the reassurance of the woman I spoke to before my surgery and the help and support I received from the group after it.
To be able to chat with others and offer just a tiny virtual hug or an emoji smile can make all the difference. It did for me at a very scary time.
I’m achieving something here. I matter. I am making a difference. Feeling a useful part of the volunteer team perhaps pays back some of the support I’ve received.
When word was spreading that coronavirus may happen and schools might close, I was still very much living in a fog of grief.
I don’t like running. I never have! I find it quite dull, BUT, give me some motivation and a challenge and I’ll do it!