Western Daily Press (Saturday)
‘I thought I had long Covid – it was leukaemia’
AMAN who thought he had long Covid was told by doctors to eat more brocolli – but was actually battling leukaemia.
Robert Hale, 32, was struck down with coronavirus last February but even after a few weeks he still had low energy.
He visited doctors who said he had fatigue and said one gave him a “huge lecture’’ about his eating habits and the need to eat more fibre – including broccoli.
But aerospace worker Robert, of Thornbury, South Gloucestershire, noticed a strange rash and he was diagnosed with leukaemia.
He said: “I had no appetite and no energy to do much aside from work and sleep. The doctors gave me a huge lecture about how I wasn’t eating enough and needed more fibre in my diet.
“I was then called about 24 hours later by the doctors where I was told I had a vitamin B deficiency, and was given another lecture about eating more broccoli.
“I was napping a lot at work. Probably about two or three times a day.
“At the time, long Covid was being advertised everywhere and all my symptoms fitted the condition to a T – so I just left it for two months, until one day my back was really itchy. I showed my parents, and my dad urged me to go and see a doctor immediately.”
The doctors completed a blood test and asked Robert a series of lifestyle questions. A few days later, Robert was told he had leukaemia.
He said: “I left it so long as I just assumed it was long Covid because it was the biggest thing on the news.
“I found myself being put off going to the doctors because I didn’t want to burden them or catch something. In 100 years I never would have guessed it was cancer.
“So go see a doctor and get yourself checked. I got lucky – the doctors picked it up eventually. If I left it a couple more weeks I wouldn’t be here.”
Robert was sent for chemotherapy where he was told he had two/three weeks left to live. As part of his treatment, Robert required a bone marrow transplant and as it turned out, his sister was a 100% match.
Robert has been in and out of hospital for months after also suffering a stroke which almost left him paralysed.
As a way of dealing with everything, Robert started an Instagram
account – @robs_cancer_journey – to document his journey, which ended up becoming his own support network.
“Because of Covid, all of the hospital support groups stopped running.
“So Instagram became a kind of online therapy group. You could find someone else’s story of a similar situation, or they find yours and you both reach out.
“The more I knew about my condition, the better I felt. One of the toughest things is the isolation. I haven’t seen a lot of my friends since April last year.
“There’s only so much Netflix one person can watch!
“A lot of people think isolating for 10 days is bad enough, but try over two years. When I read about people
who are sick and tired of the Covid rules, asking ‘why should I wear a mask?’, I’m sat here thinking the restrictions are there to protect people like me, not you.
“Despite being – fingers crossed – rid of the cancer now, the possibility of living another five years with the transplant is quite slim.
“The doctors say I have the immune system of a baby, and even if I get a cold it could be deadly.”
On January 6 Robert had his sixth biopsy since his leukaemia diagnosis.
The results came back this week telling him he is in remission, with no cancer found in his system.
Robert said: “I’m looking forward to finally enjoying this summer after spending the last one in a hospital.”