A grieving husband whose wife died of cancer says more needs to be done to catch the disease early.
Miriam Book, from Hove, died of pancreatic cancer in April aged 71, 18 months after diagnosis.
She started to experience gut pain in July 2021 but a trip to A&E didn’t flag anything serious.
After months of going back and forth with her doctor, she was diagnosed as diabetic, which prompted the practice nurse to do blood tests.
The results were of concern and a CT scan confirmed the worst - stage four pancreatic cancer.
“We were initially given eight months but she managed 18 with chemotherapy,” said Miriam’s husband Tony.
“The first year was pretty good but the last six months were more challenging. A lot of intervention was needed and trips to the hospital but she kept cheerful and courageous throughout. The two of us decided to keep going until she couldn’t any more.”
Tony, 77, said it is “unacceptable” that more than half of people diagnosed with pancreatic cancer die within three months.
By the time Miriam was diagnosed, she had stage four pancreatic cancer, meaning she was unable to receive the only potentially lifesaving treatment, surgery.
Tony will be taking on the South Coast Challenge with Miriam’s son Phil Harris and family friend Rob Doe to raise more than £5,000 for Pancreatic Cancer UK to go towards earlier detection and improved treatments.
Team Miriam will be tackling the Hove to Arundel challenge, leaving at 6am on September 3 and walking a total of 43km.
The challenge was chosen in part due to Miriam’s adventurous spirit, which took her and Tony on many famous walking paths and treks across the globe. They also stayed closer to home and tackled many of the UK’s biggest walks such as the South Downs Way – a route which features heavily as part of the South Coast Challenge.
“She’ll be with us along the walk that weekend, in every sense,” said Tony.
“This is a nasty disease that needs to be diagnosed early.
“If we had the right tests maybe it can start being caught at stage one instead of stage four when there is nothing more that can be done for you.”
More than half of people diagnosed with pancreatic cancer die within three months, according to Pancreatic Cancer UK.
In the UK, 80 per cent of people with pancreatic cancer are not being diagnosed until after the disease has spread and lifesaving treatment is no longer possible – almost double the proportion for other cancers. Pancreatic Cancer UK is investing in ground-breaking research and supporting patients and their loved ones through its freephone support line staffed by specialist nurses.
The charity said pancreatic cancer is tough to diagnose as its vague symptoms are common to many less serious health conditions and there are no screening programmes or simple tests available to help doctors.
Symptoms include:
- The whites of the eyes or the skin turn yellow (jaundice) and people may also have itchy skin, darker pee and paler poo than usual
- Loss of appetite or losing weight without trying
- Feeling tired or having no energy
- A high temperature, or feeling hot or shivery.
People can donate to Tony’s challenge by visiting www.justgiving.com/fundraising/TONY-BOOK
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