A Journey Through Throat Cancer — and a Wish to Help Others

This patient's story is recent, and the person wished to remain anonymous. They hope some in our community will identify with the journey and find courage and hope.
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In 2023, I went to my doctor because I had found a lump on my neck.

After a biopsy, I was diagnosed with throat cancer.

Luckily, the cancer was found early, and I was told that my chances of successful treatment were good. But I had no idea just how tough the treatment would be.

Two days after New Year, in 2024, I started six weeks of radiotherapy and chemotherapy. I had radiotherapy five days a week and chemotherapy once a week.

By the end of the third week, I had lost 11 kilograms. I had lost my sense of taste and could hardly swallow. I needed a feeding tube to help me get fluids and food. I was taking morphine three times a day and sleeping sitting up.

By the end of treatment, I was very unwell.

I went home from hospital, but the next morning I was back in A&E with sepsis. I spent another three weeks in hospital. My feeding tube came out for the third time, and at one point I nearly died.

I was lucky that I had been very fit before my treatment, and slowly I began to get better. But recovery took many months.

In June 2024, my feeding tube was finally removed. I had to learn how to swallow food properly again. It was a huge relief.

Slowly, my taste returned. I was able to eat and swallow more normally. My weight came back, and I started to feel like myself again.

It took about four months after leaving the hospital before I felt well enough to really enjoy life again.

It was an extremely tough journey. I could not have got through it without the amazing support of my wife, who was beside me throughout my treatment and recovery.

There were many other challenges along the way, but I don't want to list them all. I think you get the picture.

Turning a difficult experience into something good

One thing I promised myself during my recovery was that I would try to do something good with what I had been through.

My wife and I have recently moved back to New Zealand after my treatment in the UK. I would now like to help people who are going through a similar experience.

I found it incredibly helpful to talk to people who had actually been through cancer treatment themselves. They understood what I was going through in a way that others couldn't. Those conversations helped me mentally and emotionally.

I still keep in touch with some of the people I met during my cancer journey. We have a WhatsApp group, and we continue to support each other today.

If sharing my experience can help someone else feel a little less alone, then something good will have come from what I went through.