Emily and Lucy’s Race for Life

In 2013 our mum was diagnosed with a rare form of salivary gland cancer. She had surgery and thankfully no need for radiotherapy or chemotherapy. Due to the rarity of the type of cancer, there were unanswered questions. Our mum made a complete recovery and the worst we thought was thankfully over with. However, in May 2018 she was sadly diagnosed with reoccurring salivary gland cancer with lymph node involvement. This meant a more complex surgery was needed involving a neck dissection and Plastic surgery reconstruction, followed by six weeks of intensive radiotherapy. The surgery resulted in a degree of facial paralysis along with problems with swallowing, lack of taste and eating requiring tube feeding. Our mum is our inspiration and is so strong, she lives each day and loves with everything she has. She is getting stronger each day and we hope, one day we can be as amazing as our beautiful mum. Mum has had great treatment and support from James Cook hospital and has a wonderful support network with family and friends. Head and neck and salivary gland cancers are often complex and lack the support groups that other cancers have. Raising the general awareness to bring a greater understanding and develop more support groups for Head and Neck cancers that in the future will benefit others.