After a terrifying diagnosis, my family and friends stepped up in the most incredible way. By Lesley Calder, 60
As the packed-out stadium buzzed with electricity, Pete Townshend slowly raised his pick, then struck up the unforgettable opening chords of The Who’s My Generation.
Then, as Roger Daltrey stepped up to the mic, the crowd erupted.
‘Woo!’ I cheered, not caring that I’d be hoarse the next day.
My hubby David, 60, had recently taken early retirement from his job in marketing.
To celebrate his new-found freedom, we’d been going to as many live shows as possible, rocking out to our favourite bands, including The Who
and Fleetwood Mac.
We also had plans to take a long tour of France and Spain, before jetting off to more far-flung destinations.
But the day after The Who concert, I felt really run down.
‘Maybe I’m getting a cold,’
I said to David, between coughing fits.
‘Why don’t you go lie down?’ he suggested.
But over the next week, my symptoms worsened.
I’d gone from feeling fit as a fiddle to becoming breathless just folding the laundry.
When I woke up in a sweat one night, I wondered if it was something more serious.
As I went back and forth
to the GP, my list of symptoms grew to include bleeding
gums and a persistent ear infection.
One afternoon, after I’d had a blood test, my doctor rang.
‘You need to get to A&E,’ he said urgently. ‘But you mustn’t drive yourself.’
‘My hubby can take me,’ I replied.
David was in Cambridge for the day, but he rushed back to our home in Bishop’s Stortford, Hertfordshire, to take me to hospital.
There, the consultant told me I’d got leukaemia and that it was serious.
‘Have I left it too late?’ I asked, terrified.
‘If left untreated, you’d only have weeks to live,’ he said. ‘But we’re going to do everything we can to get you through this. You’re not a lost cause.’
All I could think of was how David and our son Max, 22, would cope without me.
But there was no time to panic as I began treatment, starting with 10 days of chemotherapy.
It was vicious, but my family
kept my spirits up.
'You're not a lost cause'
When I was forced to miss Max’s graduation from Anglia Ruskin University, he stopped by afterwards and we toasted his success with a glass of non-alcoholic fizz.
Three months of the most gruelling treatment put me in remission. But I still needed a stem cell transplant to try to prevent the leukaemia from returning, and all my family offered to be tested.
My sister Ann was found to be the best match and a month later, I received her life-saving cells. If it hadn’t been for her, I wouldn’t
have made it, and
I was grateful for
what she’d done.
Knowing Ann had saved my life inspired Max to sign up as a potential stem cell donor too – it’s quick and easy to do the painless mouth swabs.
‘I want to help others like Auntie Ann helped you,’ he explained.
He registered
as a donor with DKMS, an international charity dedicated to the fight against blood cancer and blood disorders.
The more I learnt about the charity, the more impressed
I was with their work.
So I started volunteering
with them, helping out at fairs and going into schools to talk
to students about stem cell donation.
I loved it so much, that I founded the DKMS Herts & Essex Volunteering Hub, dedicated to raising awareness and recruiting potential donors.
To raise vital funds for the charity, I decided to climb
Ben Nevis, joined by a group
of friends.
It was gruelling, but I’d beaten cancer so there was no way I was letting a mountain defeat me.
As we climbed, strangers were so encouraging.
‘I’m going to register when
I get home,’ one chap told me. ‘And I’ll spread the word to others.’
The moment I reached the summit, it finally hit me. I’d come so close to dying, yet here I was – alive and stronger than ever. Tears filled my eyes as I gazed out over the spectacular landscape below.
Best of all, our trek raised £2400 for DKMS, which we knew could help register over 60 potential donors.
The number felt significant as I celebrated my 60th birthday just a few months later.
Since starting the hub, over 200 people have registered, which is amazing. But we’ve still got a long way to go. Max has been called on to donate after discovering he was a match for an anonymous patient.
It’s five years now since my diagnosis and I finally feel like I’m back to my old self.
Ann’s incredible gift meant I beat leukaemia. We raise a glass each year to celebrate the transplant anniversary. I’ll never forget her selfless act.
I’m proud of Max for donating too and I will continue to encourage others to give this life-saving gift.
Max, 28, told Take a Break, ‘When I realised how lucky Mum was to find a donor, I knew I had to sign up. Joining the register was the least I could do. It’s very much a full circle moment and I’m happy I was able to pay it forward.’
● To register as a donor, please request a swab kit online at dkms.org.uk/register and to support Lesley’s fundraising efforts visit dkms.enthuse.com and search for ‘Lesley Calder’.