Defiance in the face of cancer diagnosis
BBC One, Wednesday, 9pm
FILMED over a year, this three-part series follows nine people across the country living with cancer as they and their families come to terms with the disease.
In episode two we meet 83-year-old June and her three daughters in the consulting room, as a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer is confirmed. The decision to have no treatment sends ripples down the generations, as her daughters, grandchildren and great-grandchildren face up to her imminent death.
Over the months we see her daughters help June fulfill her ‘bucket list’ – top of which is living long enough to see her youngest granddaughter marry. But as the months pass a continual deterioration is putting this in jeopardy.
In Wiltshire, nine yearold Mikey is rushed into hospital for surgery to remove a brain tumour. We meet him as he begins his chemotherapy. The impact of Mikey’s diagnosis and treatment is felt keenly, as his parents juggle their care for him in hospital with looking after his seven siblings at home. As his treatment progresses we witness how the large family come together in tough times – and how Mikey’s cancer brings the local community together in their support.
Meanwhile, at the Royal Marsden in Surrey, 17-year-old Phoebe, being treated for a large tumour on her kidney, is offered a chance to travel to America for proton radiotherapy - a treatment that will be available in the UK in 2018.
Juggling schoolwork, a new relationship and cancer treatment, Phoebe uses a blog to give vent to her changing emotions as she explores what her diagnosis means.