LINDA NOLAN ON WHY SHE
Linda was diagnosed as incurable a year ago this week and has no idea how long her illness will remain treatable.
Now she reveals she could not bear the same ordeal her sister faced as she died of secondary breast cancer five years ago.
Yesterday in our sister paper the Daily Mirror, the 59-year-old singer told how she wants to live more than ever.
But she wants that life to be as enjoyable as possible, partying with friends and family, and even enjoying a little revenge on those who’ve wronged her.
“If the cancer spreads and they offer me chemotherapy to give me an extra few months, I would turn it down after what Bernie went through,” she said.
“She was a fighter, but the last couple of months of her life were really difficult. She was in terrible pain.
“I’d rather have a couple of months feeling OK instead of the chemo making me feel awful. I want to enjoy the last months of my life to the full.”
Linda – one of the six Nolan Sisters – first found a lump in her breast in 2005, and was told she had an aggressive stage three cancer.
After gruelling treatment she was given the all-clear a year later, but 12 months ago she was told the disease was back and she had secondary cancer in her hip. The same condition claimed 52-year-old Bernie’s life in 2013 after it spread to her lungs, liver and brain.
SCARED
Recalling the final two weeks she spent at Bernie’s bedside with sisters Anne, 67, Denise, 65, Maureen, 63, and 52-year-old Coleen, Linda’s memories include the morphine she helped give her and the hiss of Bernie’s oxygen tank.
They have helped Linda decide on a ‘Do Not Resuscitate’ order, so doctors will not revive her if her heart stops.
“That is a terrifying thought,” she said. “I am scared of dying, but I am drawing my strength from Bernie every day. We’re all going to die but to hear your life is shortened is unbearable.
“We thought Bernie would be here until she was 90, still dancing around like the party animal she was, but then you realise that can be snatched from you so quickly.”
Her sister’s enduring spirit has given Linda the courage to face up squarely to her diagnosis – and her next hospital scan in March.
“Most people don’t have the opportunity to know they’ve only got a limited time left, so I’m determined to make the most of it,” she said. “As hard as it would be, I would definitely have a party.
“I would send out invitations saying ‘I don’t know how much longer I have left’ and it would be a chance to say goodbye.
“Not that I’m hell bent on revenge, but I’d also write to the people who have done me wrong over the years and let them know they’re not invited.
“I joked to my family before my birthday last month that I was tempted to have a massive celebration in case I don’t make
But Linda says she can ‘feel Brian’s presence’ With Bernie on her 40th birthday With Brian and bridesmaid sisters