We had no idea before Chris's illness, that lung cancer is the UK's biggest killer, eclipsing breast, prostate and pancreatic cancer combined.  We also didn't know that lung cancer research receives only 6% of overall funding.  

The Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation provides information and support to lung cancer patients, helping them to understand their cancer.  They organise awareness campaigns to help with earlier diagnosis, better treatment for patients, campaigns for a national lung check programme and confronts the stigma associated with lung cancer.  They fund more than £1m of research every year to help improve detection and treatment of lung cancer.  Public support is the most important weapon in the fight against lung cancer.  

We would be so grateful if donations could be made to the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation rather than sending floral tributes for Chris to help this wonderful charity  continue their activities and benefit other patients in the future.  We feel sure this is what Chris would have wished. Very many thanks to you all.

CHRIS's JOURNEY

Chris was diagnosed with non-smoking related lung cancer as a medical emergency at UCLH Macmillan Cancer Centre on 14 November 2017.  Tragically, his cancer had been missed by his GP and at diagnosis it had already spread and was incurable.   He was given the news while working in London, while we were in Bristol, unable to be with him immediately.  Following urgent radiotherapy to his spine and brain in London, his care was transferred to Bristol at the beginning of December 2017 and he was given immunotherapy for symptom control in early January 2018.  When this didn't work, conventional palliative chemotherapy followed and to our great joy, his disease stabilised at the beginning of the summer and we began to have discussions about him joining clinical trials.  We had to move house and had a happy summer together in our new house in Bristol but by September his cancer had begun to spread again and he was offered more chemotherapy to try to keep his symptoms at bay.  

Sadly, it quickly became apparent that treatment wasn't working and towards the end of November, after a hospital stay, he was discharged home to be with us,  as he wished.  He was comfortable and extremely well cared for by the NHS community teams, to whom we are eternally grateful.  We are so very thankful to all the clinical teams involved in his care from diagnosis including the nurses and consultants at UCLH where he was first given the news, and later the nurses and consultants at Bristol Haematology and Oncology Centre whose treatment was so carefully considered and compassionate.