Our final blog for Volunteers’ Week is from our reviewer David, who talks about his experience of cancer and his many volunteering roles.
My cancer journey
My journey started on 22nd August 2005. The past fortnight had seen a number of unexplained symptoms, including being sick in the early hours of the morning, and I thought I should see my GP just in case. I was confident it would be nothing serious. I’d had a health check back in June and the traffic light grading system had me hitting green. I saw a nurse at my GP surgery. ‘Try a dairy free diet for 24 hours’ she said, ‘come back if you're not better and I'll get you in to see the doctor.’. My wife took me back and I was sent to hospital straight away.
At the hospital they did a CT scan. It showed something was there. They told me it was a tumour and that they wanted to get it out as soon as possible. Honestly, I felt lifted by this news! I was a senior project manager, my job was solutions. It was clear I had a problem, but the right people had worked out what the problem was and what needed to be done. Let’s get on! Less than a week later, surgeons removed a tumour the size of a walnut. Further tests showed that it was type of brain tumour called a glioblastoma multiforme (grade 4).
I was put on a six-week course of radiotherapy and a daily dose of Temozolomide. After a 3 month break I was back on Temozolomide. And then came the end-of-treatment-MRI scan. At the start of my treatment I had been struck with an atmosphere of despondency. I’d been told I had 12 to 15 months to live. But not now – ‘Fab, fantastic, everything has improved.’ I was told.
I got back to work after 277 working days off. It was a very slow return and I was under no pressure. I turned 50, and this coincided with a restructuring at work. I could get early retirement and a generous redundancy package. At the time, the thought of spending the summer in France with my lovely wife and daughter was too tempting to give up, so I took the money. I decided I'd look for work again when I returned.
As if on cue, I returned from France to an email from an old colleague ‘Do you want to help out on this project Dave?’ It was a zero hours contract, four days a week. I stayed there until July 2013, by which time I had emerged as the top performer. However, one morning I was called into a meeting and was sent home on sick leave and told to wait for an appointment with an occupational therapist. At this time, I'd had 21 clear MRI scans! When I saw the occupational therapist, he was stunned and wrote back my employer to say that there was no medical reason I couldn’t be at work. He told them that I was covered by the Equality Act 2010. I told them to get a copy of the excellent Macmillan Work and Cancer toolkit, which did not ease their panic! Eventually we came to an acceptable financial arrangement for me to leave.
Volunteering
I was keen to give something back and signed up to be a Macmillan Cancer Voice. The first bit of work I did for Macmillan was to identify the HR lead in FTSE 100 companies, so that Regional Macmillan teams could make contact and hopefully establish a relationship.
I have also done book reviews and donated any that I felt were suitable to the local cancer drop in centre. I have been involved in a number of forums where I have been able to use my professional expertise. Although in some situations I'm no substitute for qualified medical advice, I hope I've been able to show just what is possible.
I have also worked for a brain tumour charity to help them get the matter of brain tumour research funding raised in parliament.
Now retired with time on my hands, I hope I can continue to help Macmillan in its work. I've defied medical expectations and feel it’s my duty to put something back.
To see what else Macmillan's cancer information team has been blogging about, please visit our blog home page! You can subscribe to receive our blogs by email or RSS too.
We're with you every step of the way
The Macmillan team is here to help. Our cancer support specialists can answer your questions, offer support, or simply listen if you need a chat. Call us free on 0808 808 00 00.
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