CANCER can be one of the most devastating illnesses in the modern world. Writing as the husband of a wonderful young woman who was recently a victim of cancer, this freelancer knows first-hand the pain, destruction, anguish, loss, loneliness, helplessness and fears that cancer brings with it. As The Herald recently detailed, local charity Adam’s Bucketful of Hope is campaigning for a Cancer Day Unit to be installed in Withybush Hospital and thus provide local residents with nearby cancer facilities – a campaign The Herald itself is staunchly backing. Having had to face the battle against cancer head-on when my wife was diagnosed, I realise the importance of what they are campaigning for. Life with cancer is a life of appointments, time-frames and regimes; basically a life of routines – and having professional support and guidance in these kinds of scenarios is invaluable. And all aspects of the process come under this same umbrella of professional guidance and support; doctors, nurses, wards, beds, drugs, treatment facilities etc. these are all vital components in the fight against cancer. These days it is easy to have an apathetic attitude towards cancer and attribute it to being an illness that tends to only afflict the older generations in the twilight of their lives. My wife was 24 years young when she lost her battle. Cancer doesn’t care what age you are, where you come from, what your lifestyle is, it can affect anyone, at any time, of any age. Period. From rudimental experience I can honestly profess that were it not for the cancer services and facilities near to home whilst my wife was unwell, I seriously don’t think I could have coped. There is no manual, no ‘Idiot’s Guide’, no training seminars you can attend to make you an expert in dealing with this sort of thing. It’s different for everyone. It’s always different. But it is important to provide patients, as well as those on the periphery, with as much support as possible. Chemotherapy treatments, for example, can last a number of hours; blood tests must be run to check immune systems. Additionally there is any manner of drug concoctions that patients will need to be prescribed and as such they will require facilities close by. When my wife was ill we were fortunate that the hospital was pretty close (around a 20 drive). But eventually even this became a struggle as she was almost perpetually in a great deal of pain. For patients having to travel several hours from home to their nearest facilities this is untenable and can prove extremely traumatic. My wife at one point was taking between 9-15 tablets 4 times a day. These had to be done at specific timeframes, so sorting out meal times became a very regimental process. New drugs would need to be collected regularly, usually biweekly and a lot of the time we were reliant on the hospital to prescribe the right drugs, as we sometimes struggled to keep up with the number of different pills she required. There were further challenges as her illness wore on and she became less and less mobile. Moving around became cumbersome and stairs became a big problem. Eventually she had to use a wheelchair to get around, which provided more issues and yet more cost for her, myself and her family. Money was also a big worry – I wasn’t working whilst she was ill and eventually her mother decided to stop work as well to care for her daughter. I had a bit in savings and was supplementing this with sick pay from my job, but the well soon ran dry. Luckily the cancer unit assigned us a social worker who was responsible for sorting out grants for us, checks to cover transport costs and sorting my wife’s application for benefits (as she was unable to work) to save us the hassle of having to do it ourselves. It was difficult for those around her/us too – her parents and family were incredible and we would often takes turns comforting each other, updating each other on drug regime’s and appointment times and generally just being there for one another. Cancer can be an expensive illness, for patients, their families and for the health service. This is why facilities such as these are vital in the struggle – it is beneficial to everybody and helps with practical matters, such as money, that patients and their families don’t even consider until they become issues. But the health service sectors business is saving lives and without investing the necessary money in the fight against cancer the battle is going to be very one-sided. Facilities such as the ones proposed at Withybush Hospital are imperative to giving patients a fighting chance of survival, or at the very least helping to prolong their lives somewhat. My wife’s original survival prognosis was 4-5 months, due to the support and facilities she was given she fought for 11 months, and I will always be grateful that we had that extra time together. She deserved it. All patients do.