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Hello my name is Jill Spence I Have set up this group to provide a support group for bereaved parents. I am married to my husband Rob and have 5 children Julie (22), Nicola (19), David (18), Rachel (12) and Hannah (4).
It was Friday 13th December 2002 when we heard the most devastating news any parent could hear, that your child has a brain tumour.
Rachel was born 8th October 1991 and was a fit and healthy child. She attended St. Mary Magdalene primary school and was due to leave in July 2003. At 11 years of age she was a beautiful girl with so much to live for. Rachel had a smile for everybody. A Heart of gold.
Our heart aching journey began at the beginning of December when Rachel complained of her eye aching. So I made an appointment at our local optician who told me that Rachel had a lazy eye and he prescribed glasses. Later that week as Rachel was getting ready for school I noticed that the left side of her mouth was pulled upwards. As a concerned mother I booked an appointment at our local doctors.
After the G.P. examined Rachel he told me he couldn’t find anything wrong, and he prescribed a 2 week course of paracetamol. I was not satisfied with his decision and told him I would be taking Rachel to the local hospital. At the hospital we were told that we would need to get to Newcastle General Hospital immediately and there was a bed waiting for Rachel.
At Newcastle General Rachel was taken for an MRI scan which lasted 2 hours. After several more hours we were told that Rachel had an inoperable tumour on the stem of her brain.
The priority for the doctors was to stabilise the pressure in Rachel’s head as it could have killed her. In the following 10 days it was a rollercoaster ride of 5 operations which resulted being in intensive care twice.
We spent a happy Christmas at home before Rachel had to be rushed back into hospital on Boxing Day. Over New Year Rachel had a shunt fitted which eased the pressure on her brain.
From then on Rachel need 6 weeks of radiotherapy to shrink the tumour. Then a scan revealed it had shrunk but one side was continuing to grow. A course of chemotherapy was needed.
Rachel got her chemotherapy orally from home, after every month she was checked for progress. After 2 months things didn’t look very good for her but in the 3rd month things picked up, Rachel was doing well and was prescribed the 4th month of chemo. It was into the second week of this month Rachel was not responding to the treatment anymore. And we were told nothing more could be done for Rachel.
In between Rachel’s treatment when she was well enough, she expressed a wish to swim with dolphins. This was a very emotional moment for the whole family, and it is one we will never forget. In June 2003 Rachel was bridesmaid for her uncle which was a moment we thought we would never see, but determination in Rachel, she was the belle of the ball that day. In the following months we made sure that Rachel enjoyed every possibly moment. Until she started to slow down, however, she still wanted to be involved in everyday life which we made sure she was.
It was September 8th 2003 when Rachel sadly passed away peacefully, which was a month away from her 12th birthday. She never got to attend Secondary school but she was an inspiration to us all and we are all very proud of her. Throughout her illness she never complained about anything.
We Love and Miss you so much Rachel,
Mam, Dad, Julie, Nicola, David, Hannah. x x x x x x |
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Jill’s Story |
