‘It may not save her life indefinitely, but it will be the best way for her to have much more time with her family, whom she loves so much’ (Image: PA Real Life)
While picking up her son Arthur while enjoying family in Lanzarote, Lorraine Hartley felt her back twist and then ‘crack’.
At first, the mother thought she had gotten something out, but in just five months her world fell apart.
The persistent back pain he had suffered since that vacation in November 2019 was in fact lung cancer.
The discovery came after Lorraine, who was pregnant with her second child, saw her midwife in April 2020. By then she had already seen her doctor several times and even called an ambulance to help deal with the agonizing pain.
Concerned about how serious it was, the midwife recommended that she undergo further scans, which revealed the shocking diagnosis.
Just over 18 months later, Lorraine, 39, who lives in Halling, Kent, now lives with brain cancer and struggles to survive so she can have more time to watch her young family grow.
Speaking on her behalf, because she is too sick to speak, Lorraine’s fiancé Dave Topping recalled the moment they heard the shocking news: ‘When the doctors realized it was cancer, they initially didn’t know where it had originated from.
Lorraine when she was pregnant with her eldest son Arthur (Image: PA Real Life)
His symptoms started with back pain (Image: PA Real Life)
‘They examined her breasts, which were fine and finally decided that it was lung cancer that had spread to the bones.
“It had probably gone through the back of the lungs to the spine, the rib cage, the shoulder blades, and some deposits around the lymph nodes.”
‘It was terrible. She was pregnant and we found out she had stage four cancer, almost stage five. The only vague good news we received was that the type of cancer I had could be treated with targeted drug therapy
‘I still can’t understand it all today,’ he further said. “They told us he had two years to live when I wanted him to have another 50.”
Doctors advised nonsmoker Lorraine to have a C-section at 30 weeks when her baby would be strong enough to survive, so that she could start her treatment as soon as possible.
On May 6, 2020, the couple welcomed their second son, Henry, who weighed just 3.3 pounds (1.5 kg).
Henry was born in May 2020 (Image: PA Real Life)
Lorraine with Arthur and Henry (Image: PA Real Life)
While receiving care in the neonatal dependency ward, so that her lungs could be strengthened, Lorraine began her targeted treatment to stabilize her cancer: a daily beta-blocker, which prevents proteins from binding to cells and replicating, thus causing cancer it cannot grow. , which means that eventually the cells die
Dave, 35, said: ‘It’s really effective but, combined with the other drugs Lorraine has, the side effects are very unpleasant, causing things like nosebleeds and soft fingers and toenails.
Ten weeks after Henry’s birth, he was strong enough to go home. Meanwhile, as her mother Lorraine’s treatment continued, she and Dave dared to hope that she had beaten the odds and was conquering the disease.
‘The injuries to the bones and lungs had all been reduced to scar tissue and his bones had fused into position, giving him a new stability,’ ‘Dave said. “We were hoping to get over it.
Lorraine with Henry in the hospital (Image: PA Real Life)
However, when Lorraine’s health began to deteriorate, in October 2021, the couple received shocking news that scans had revealed eight cancerous tumors in her brain.
“She is basically a very sick person. She has been fragile for a long time, ‘said Dave, who had to take off his job as an operations manager for long periods of time to care for his children.
‘The goal Drug therapy that was very effective in the body unfortunately does not pass very well to the brain and cannot treat tumors present there.
‘The position of some of them is affecting their motor skills, which means they are limping, they can only use the stairs and now they sometimes use a wheelchair. ‘
He added that Lorraine’s vision has become ‘blurry’ since then and that she has problems with her short-term memory.
Dave said, ‘She just wants a little more to watch her family grow’ (Image: PA Real Life)
The couple, who have been together for eight years and engaged for four, are now desperate to do what they can to prolong Lorraine’s life, so she can spend more time with Arthur, three, and Henry, one.
Although she is starting radiotherapy on the NHS, they also need £ 8,400 a month, or a total of £ 101,008, to fund a year’s supply of a drug called Osimertinib, which could help block the growth and spread of cancer. cells.
However, Lorraine sadly does not currently qualify for it on the NHS, so she and Dave have created a GoFundMe page to help raise money.
The couple are also appealing to the NHS for further treatment and we are in talks with the drug company about compassionate funding.
‘It may not save his life indefinitely,’ Dave admitted, ‘but it will be the best way for him to have much more time with his family, whom he loves so much.
‘Lorraine just wants to see Arthur go to school and see Henry hit a few more milestones.
‘He just wants a little more time to watch his family grow.
‘I still can’t figure it all out today,’ Dave said (Image: PA Real Life)
Explaining the criteria for prescribing patients, an NHS spokesperson said: ‘The NHS offers treatment to patients who have been licensed by the MHRA (Medicines and Health Products Regulatory Agency) and adhere to the NICE recommendations ( National Institute for Excellence in Health and Care).
‘Decisions about the right treatment for each person are made by patients, clinical experts and caregivers.’
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