On 27th July 2017 we received the devastating news that Matt had cancer. He had just turned 40.

We had 3 beautiful children aged 4, 5 and 16.  Our whole lives ahead of us and full of enthusiasm for the things we wanted to achieve.  A cancer diagnosis was not part of the plan.

Matt was determined to battle through and fight this. He was young and fit and both we and his Oncology team were optimistic that he had a good chance of beating it.

After having endured several rounds of brutal chemo and then major surgery in December, Matt was finally released from hospital a week before Christmas. The surgery revealed that the tumour was unfortunately a lot larger than the previous scans had shown but they were confident that they had removed it all. Matt was back at home with me and the children and we enjoyed a magical Christmas together.

After the gruelling 5 months we had experienced, we at last felt optimistic, believing that the worst was now behind us. Matt amazed his oncology team with the rate of his post operative recovery and for the first time in a long time we began to make plans for the future.  However, at the end of January we could tell things weren't quite right and following further scans we received the horrific news that the cancer had spread and Matt was now terminally ill.  That was the moment all hope was lost and a dark cloud descended on all our families.

The cancer was very aggressive and over the next few weeks I watched the rapid deterioration of the man I loved dying in front of me, helpless to do anything to ease his pain and that's when the Hospice  of St Francis stepped in.

They took control - they reassured us that his quality of life could be better and that they could ease his pain and that was a huge relief to us. We no longer felt on our own and I felt confident that Matt was now receiving the best care possible.  They gave Matt hope - not that he could be cured but that they could support him in achieving his goals, namely that they could get him to a position where he would be able to spend more quality time with the children and continue to make special memories with them. 

The staff at the hospice are special! They address the emotional as well as the physical. Our families were always made to feel so welcome and everyone from the cleaners, catering staff, nurses doctors and volunteers knew our names and checked in on how we were doing as well as updating us on Matt.

The Hospice provided us with the support we needed when we were at our most vulnerable.  When I asked Matt whether he was pleased with the care he was receiving he replied 'Bottom line Rebecca - I could not do this without them' He went on to say that he would be so proud if I raised money for the Hospice once he'd gone so I'm sticking to my side of the bargain and to honour the memory of the most amazing man I will ever know I am Trekking 50K in the Sahara to raise much needed funds for the Hospice. Please give generously so that other families facing similar tragedies can receive the support and care they need at one of the most heart-breaking times of their lives - thank you!