Help Us, HELP YOU
The NHS is raising awareness of lung cancer with its latest campaign, encouraging anyone who’s experiencing a cough that lasts three weeks or more that isn’t COVID-19 to contact their GP practice
Anna Selo, 71 – who was diagnosed with lung cancer last year – says, “Peering out from under my duvet, I raised my head long enough to thank my daughter Monica. ‘What would I do without you?’ I said. Monica had been taking care of me as I’d come down with a terrible cough for a week. I certainly didn’t think that it was anything more than a typical winter cold.
Two weeks later, the coughing and wheezing were still wearing me down, so Monica said to me, ‘Come on, Mum, you have to call the GP.’ I took her advice and picked up the phone to book an appointment. At the surgery, the GP said that he would send me for an X-ray. I was quickly booked in at my local hospital.
In February 2020, reports of COVID-19 were gathering momentum at a frightening pace. But the hospital was incredibly well organised. I sat in the waiting room two metres away from the next patient. I was in and out without fuss. The X-ray showed a suspicious mass on my lungs that needed further investigation, so I then had a biopsy.
The NHS was moving at breakneck speed, guiding me through the process.
I was soon called in for the results. Monica, my son Martin and his wife Louise came with me.
I had a horrible feeling as we held hands and the consultant started to speak. ‘I’m sorry to tell you this, Anna, but you have an inoperable tumour,’ he said. The room began spinning as he explained that the tumour was at the entrance to my lungs, making it impossible to operate. ‘What does this mean?’ I asked, expecting the worst. ‘Treatments have come on so much in the last ten years – there
‘I’m in the safest of hands’
and chemotherapy. My appointments were staggered with those of other patients to protect us all. As I sat in the hospital during one of my treatments, I felt so grateful to have the NHS to lean on and my wonderful family to support me, all in the middle of a global pandemic.
At home one evening, I had the urge to share my story. I wanted to tell others that cancer treatment doesn’t always need to feel so frightening, even during a pandemic. So, I wrote to The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation, as the treatment I receive is founded on research by centres like this and the fantastic NHS.
If you have a cough that lasts three weeks or more, don’t hesitate to contact your GP practice. On that initial visit, my GP jumped into action like a superhero and ushered me onto the road of diagnosis and treatment. I am so grateful to be receiving the care that I am, and I feel optimistic about the future. I know I’m in the safest of hands.”
MONICA, 29, TOLD BELLA
“I am deeply grateful to the NHS for looking after Mum and giving her the treatment she needs. During such difficult times, they are always perfectly organised and ready to accommodate new cancer patients. If you have a persistent cough, get checked by a doctor. You are not wasting their time, and it could save your life.”