In January, 2015, my wife, Philippa, was diagnosed with late stage bowel cancer. She was only 35 at the time, and we had a 6 month old daughter, Poppy as well. Because of this, I had to quit teaching Art and become a full-time carer for my family, and Philippa had to quit teaching Primary School.

Poppy is now almost 3 years old, and since then, Philippa has had two major surgeries on her bowel and ovaries, and has also been undergoing various chemotherapy treatments. During that time, we have exhausted our saving of the nest egg that we were originally going to eventually use as a down payment on a house.

Recently, Philippa has had bad luck with chemo treatments, so the tumors in her liver are growing and we have been referred to the Royal Marsden Hospital in London to see if we are a good candidate for a clinical trial. Along with this, we purchase alternative medicines that we hope will help the situation, things such as mushroom, fruit, herb and spice extracts. We have also recently had bad luck with our vehicle, and have had to have it repaired for 5,000 Pounds.

Since we live in Exeter, we have been advised that we will be traveling quite a lot in order for Philippa to participate in any treatments that the Marsden may offer.

At this point, we have exhausted our resources and are reaching out for any support during this very difficult time for our family. Philippa is very loving in nature, and is an excellent mother to Poppy. We cannot imagine our lives without her and will do anything to prolong her life until more effective chemo treatments are developed and put on the market.

We are not ones to ask for charity, but we are desperate for any support we can receive.

From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you in advance for any help you can offer us. We cannot express how much we appreciate your generosity.