Midland cancer survivors star in TV ad campaign
Jul 18 2009 by Alison Dayani, Birmingham Mail
THREE Midland cancer survivors have been handpicked for national TV adverts to show the stark reality of being diagnosed with the disease.
Yvonne Brown, from Kings Heath; Lee Bevan, from Redditch; and Dennis Price, from Halesowen, all feature in a new Cancer Research UK campaign with real survivors showing progress the charity has made.
Grandmother Yvonne, a 50-year-old medical technical officer at Selly Oak Hospital, overcame breast cancer after surgery to remove three lumps and 21 lymph nodes.
“I will never forget the extremely bad day when I was told I had cancer,” said Yvonne. “Yet thanks to the work of Cancer Research UK, a cancer diagnosis does not necessarily equal a death sentence and I am living proof of that.”
Retired warehouse supervisor Dennis Price, aged 77, has endured three bouts of cancer.
He was first diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 1991 but a year after having his thyroid removed, he discovered a lump and had to undergo further surgery to remove lymph nodes on both sides of his neck.
Dennis faced further heartache when a CT scan picked up a spot on one of his lungs and he needed a third of the lung removed.
“I wanted to help raise awareness and encourage public support so they can continue their lifesaving work to beat cancer.”
In the West Midlands region alone 25,900 people are diagnosed with cancer every year and the disease is responsible for one in four deaths nationally. Father-of-two Lee, a 39-year-old lift and crane engineer, is well aware of those figures after fighting back from the most severe form of skin cancer, a malignant melanoma.
In May 2007, his wife noticed a mole on his shoulder had changed and immediate surgery to remove the mole and surrounding cancerous cells has removed that danger.
“Although my story might sound trivial compared to some I really wanted people to know that the story doesn’t have to end badly,” said Lee.
“My message is, don’t be scared to visit the doctor.”
Cancer Research UK’s work has helped reduce the number of deaths from the disease.
