July 21, 2016
I’ve been quiet on the blog front recently as there hasn’t been much to report on. I have a few health and fitness related posts I’ve started but they are waiting to be finished on a rainy day. Make hay while the sun is shining and all that. I am currently on a chemo week and I have one more course planed in 3 weeks. This consists of taking 6 tablets every morning and a short IV drip later in the day for 5 days. Ive been handling it really well but I still feel a bit groggy as it has an accumulated effect, and its been a tough slog this last 18 months. After the next round I have another scan and a decision is made on what direction to take. This is really frustrating and tough to live with. I keep moving forwards and try not to think about the future and just focus more on the present. Easier said than done of course. Continue Reading
June 21, 2016
This is just a quick update so I will keep it brief for once. I was supposed to have my scan last Thursday but due to a hospital cock up I had it yesterday and the news was worth waiting for. Everything has shrunk or remained stable! The tumour on my pancreas has shrunk so much it’s not visible on the scan anymore, the one on my liver has also shrunk and the tumours on my lungs have remained the same. I am still a little disheartened and frustrated about the lungs but at the same time I am so happy that everything I am doing is paying off and its moving in the right direction. The good news released so much pressure and I can breathe a lot easier till next time. Its satisfying and extremely relieving knowing all the energy I am putting into fighting this and everything I am doing is having a positive effect.Continue Reading
May 31, 2016
Its been a little while since my last update. In this case no news is good news. Ive been keeping myself busy between rounds and enjoying feeling somewhat myself again. Im a list person so I have finally been tackling the giant to do list thats been building up for over a year. Ive also been ticking off a few places I’ve always wanted to visit. The most recent being Rome! A great place but definitely not a relaxing weekend away with all the crowds, plus there is so much to see! Now, I’m not a religious person but I think we were the only people to ever walk through the Sistine Chapel and not realise that was it until we were at the exit and looked at the secret photos I took, due to the strict security. I don’t think I can get into trouble for admitting that here… After countless rooms with the most amazingly painted ceilings it was just another room with a painted ceiling and shoulder to shoulder crowds. St Peters and the Coliseum were definitely my favourite spots. It was a mission trying to keep to my diet as it seems all Italians somehow survive on a diet of pizza, pasta and gelato! But we found a quality little place called Ginger. Check them out if you’re ever there. They do fresh food to please everyone, plus loads of organic stuff. My mum is a Saint for putting up with me whilst I was hungry and walking miles through the hot and busy streets, following google maps on my phone looking for heathy restaurants. One of my flaws is I get seriously hangry. The Italian border control was very ‘relaxed’ and it was the first place that took my word for it that it was my shoulder setting off the alarms and not a bomb, and then just gave me the nod through the gate.
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October 23, 2015
This will be about the year building up to diagnosis and my symptoms. I’m going to try and set the scene a little so bear with me! At the end of 2013 I decided to take a break from rugby and step down from the responsibilities of captaincy for the first time since I first learned how to run holding a ball……..just a week earlier. I lost my hunger for the game and needed a break. I have always played as many sports as possible although rugby took up the majority of my time and it has always been such a huge aspect of my life, my identity and my therapy! Its a religion. Continue Reading
October 22, 2015
So eleven months ago I got dealt that life changing card no one should ever hear, you have cancer. A bone cancer called Ewings Sarcoma to be precise, that had started to spread to my lungs. Since then my life has taken a massive U-turn and it’s been a tough road of 14 rounds of chemo, 6 weeks of radiotherapy and a major operation to remove the primary tumour from my right shoulder. For a very long time I struggled with acceptance, frustration, anger and load of other emotions. My body had changed in so many ways I didn’t want to look in the mirror and see a person looking back at me I didn’t recognize, so writing a blog was the last thing I could bring myself to do. However it would have probably been very beneficial for me. Continue Reading
