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One year on – Mark’s story, in his daughter’s words
In 2022, my dad’s life changed overnight. What started as sudden stomach pain led to an emergency hospital visit, where doctors found a blood clot in his intestine. The damage was so severe that they had to remove a large part of his small intestine. This left him with Short Bowel Syndrome, meaning that he couldn’t absorb nutrition from food properly. For over two years, dad was nil by mouth - no food, no drinks - getting all his nutrition intravenously into his arm or chest. Most of this time was spent in hospital, battling complications and a few near-death experiences. But then St Mark’s stepped in. They refused to give up. Through their world-class expertise and cutting-edge research, the St Mark’s Intestinal Rehabilitation Unit (IRU) found a way for dad to eat again, regain strength, and even prepare for a life-changing operation. On New Year’s Eve 2024, St Mark’s performed ‘re-connection of the intestine’ surgery which has allowed dad to live without intravenous feeding and nursing support. This would have been unthinkable a year ago. This Christmas, dad will be able to eat and enjoy food with us, all thanks to St Mark’s. Caroline
Every day, remarkable individuals and families like this come through St Mark’s doors, inspiring hope through adversity. St Mark’s expertise is matched by the resilience of its patients, who remind us why we must keep pushing frontiers in research and education if we want to create a better future for everyone affected by bowel disease.
Our work supporting research, education and innovation at St Mark’s is only possible because of people like you, Caroline and Joe. Philanthropy is deeply rooted in the hospital’s history, with the first recorded donation thought to have been made by St Mark’s patient and novelist, Charles Dickens.
2025 has been a special year as it marks 190 years since St Mark’s was founded, and we are proud to share recent examples of how philanthropy continues to help St Mark’s innovate and maintain excellent care for patients and influence standards of care nationally.
