“I was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer on the 12th February 2012. That’s six and a half years ago and life is good.”
Thanks to advances in treatment, people with late stage lung cancer – like Wendy – are living well for longer.
“When I was first diagnosed, I was ill. I had no energy. I ached all over and I was just dragging myself around.
But after the first two cycles of chemotherapy, I had a phone call from the hospital – the treatment was working. My latest scan showed signs of shrinkage and that gave me the boost I needed just when I was starting to feel sick and my hair was thinning.
I’m on a targeted therapy now and it’s so much better. I take a tablet everyday so I only have to go to hospital once, or twice a month. And you don’t get the sickness or hair loss.
I carried on working even on chemotherapy. I used to have two weeks off to recover from the chemo. But with targeted therapy, I can work all the way through. It’s not the life sentence it was. It can be maintained and you can have a normal life.”
