Why Teenage Cancer Trust?

Imagine being a teenager or young adult if you are not one now. Your whole life is ahead of you, so much optimism, so much to experience and so much life to live. Then one day you are told that you have Cancer. Cancer? Wait a minute, old folk get Cancer. How can this be? There would be confusion and undoubted fear and shock. Suddenly your life changes and when you should be planning days or nights out with friends, going to parties, playing sports or music, you are now bed bound, going through operations, treatment and recovery just to stay alive. All you can do is hope, that one day you can get back to those parties, those sports, that music, that life.

I rarely talk about this but it is pertinent to my cause so I shall. When I was 20, i was diagnosed with having a malignant tumour in my tounge. In other words; cancer of the tongue. For one, I never knew you could get cancer in the tongue, and for two; Other folk got cancer, not me. Young people with Cancer were in tiny stories in my mums Take-a-Break magazine, not me. I was young, I was in a band, I could sing, my tongue was just fine. But, the doctors said differently.

That tumour had to be removed along with a section of my tongue and my lymph nodes on my neck. Through the fog of shock, my only questions were; Will I loose my hair? then, Will manage to speak afterwards? The answers were; No I wouldn't loose my hair if the operation was successful and; Yes; I’d be able to speak, though it would need a lot of work. I spent the time in hospital and at home listening to music and secretly hoping I’d not only be able to speak properly again, but be able to sing.

The tumour was removed along with lymph nodes on my neck and fortunately for me I never needed Radio or Chemo therapy. My hair stayed and my speech was fine once the wound on my tongue healed. As for singing, I’ll let you be the judge of that. Luckily, I made a full recovery and have never looked back.

During that time it was amazing family, great friends, music and my own youthful naivety that got me through. Though I was not a teenager technically, I was barely an adult and so I have an understanding of how these kids suffering with this awful illness in all it's manifestations must be feeling. This fantastic trust provides comfortable and relaxed hospital facilities catered specifically for Teenagers and young adults. I would love to raise enough money to make a difference to the Trust, to allow them to buy something for the kids and make someones fight more peaceful and relaxed and knowing how much that means to someone in that situation drives me to write every week and inspire people to dig in and give a few quid for the cause.

There was a time when I said my fight against cancer was over and while I no longer fight the cancer in me, I will do what I can to help fight it in others. This is just one small way that I feel I can make the biggest difference.

So DONATE what you can at some point in the next year.

Peace. x

SMcB