UNEMPLOYED printer Doug, from Plumstead, south-east London, is halfway through his chemotherapy after being diagnosed with breast cancer in January. With a 21-month-old son and four daughters from a previous relationship, Doug says he wouldn’t wish the disease on his worst enemy.
“Towards the end of last year I noticed a little lump in my left nipple. I assumed it was some kind of benign cyst which would work its way out of my system.
It was only when my nipple inverted that my partner Sarah told me I had to get it checked out by my GP. I was referred to the breast care centre at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Woolwich where I had a mammogram .
Trying to squeeze my breast into a machine designed for decidedly larger women’s breasts was certainly an effort!
I genuinely thought men couldn’t get breast cancer so I managed to put the thought of the Big C to the back of my mind.
My dad had died of cancer in his late 80s but there was no history of breast cancer in my family which helped me from panicking unduly. I’d drunk a fair amount of alcohol and smoked for most of my adult life but, like most men, I assumed I’d be fine.
I got the results on January 12. When I was told it was breast cancer it was like being hit with a cricket bat. I can remember asking if I was going to die and the consultant said he’d do everything not to let that happen. I was booked in for a mastectomy at the end of January but the day before the op tests showed I was diabetic. This delayed the op. All I knew was I had this cancer inside me and every minute it was in me increased the chance of the worst case scenario.
My perfect storm of bad news was completed on February 25, just days before my rescheduled op. Out of the blue, my mum died of a hospital-acquired infection, having gone in with shingles.
While I could have delayed the operation again, I knew mum would’ve wanted me to have it and be strong for the rest of the family.
I finally had the mastectomy on March 4 and was in and out of hospital in under five hours. The big scar and losing my nipple seemed trivial compared to everything else that was going on. I went to mum’s funeral a few days later with a drain coming out of my chest, which was another low point.
When I got the results back from the mastectomy I was told the tumour was 5cm long, which was much larger than expected but they told me they’d got rid of it all.
However three of my lymph glands were found to be cancerous – which meant it could have spread through my body. I just wanted to see my son Spencer grow up so insisted on having chemo and radiation therapy.
Most of my hair has gone but, apart from that, I’m coping fine. The radiotherapy will be over by Christmas.
There are two silver linings to my story – one is I’ve been asked to be a model in Breast Cancer Care’s fashion show next month, raising hopefully thousands for the charity. The second is I’ve completely transformed my diet – out with the fried junk and snacks, in with fresh fruit and vegetables.
Since my mum’s death I’ve stopped drinking alcohol and cut right back on my smoking. A Wellman test I had last month showed I’m healthier than I’ve been since I was a teenager!
2012 has been the hardest year of my life, by some way, but I know 2013 is going to be one of the best.”
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