'My dad was my best friend'
The Aghalee woman would leave primary school each afternoon and go to the hospital where her dad Gerald, 44, was being treated for the deadly disease.
"My dad was told he had pancreatic cancer on the 1st of November 2014. It was a shock. I was 10 when he was diagnosed, mature for my age but didn’t really understand what cancer meant, especially pancreatic cancer. None of us had ever heard of it before. "He came home for Christmas in 2014 but back in for the New Year. The nurses in the Mater were kind enough to allow me, my mum and two of dad’s friends in to spend New Year’s Eve with him. My dad had multiple operations but the biggest was the Whipples procedure. It took place on the day of my entrance exam to my new school.Gaerald's operation was supposed to last 9-10 hours but took just four. Due to his condition, he never made it to chemotherapy or radiotherapy.
"One of the first visible symptoms is jaundice and normally when that is visible, it’s too late indicating Stage 4 cancer. It is one of the quickest progressing cancers with the lowest survival rates. I remember how almost overnight, it had spread all over my dad, into his lungs his kidneys and internal organs.
"You never get over a death like that, you just learn to live with it. My dad’s death wasn’t “peaceful”, he was in excruciating pain. For an 11-year-old it was horrific to watch.
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