Man thought he had indigestion before being told he had just 9 months to live
A British man received the devastating diagnosis that he had just nine months to live after he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in December 2024.
Lawrence Fox first realized something wasn't quite right in July of that year after noticing changes in his bowel habits, a common symptom of the disease.
The 67-year-old noticed food started coming 'straight out' after he'd eaten, which was a cause for concern.
"One minute I’d want to go to the toilet, the next minute I’d have nothing, depending when I’d eaten," he said.
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"I had the runs, my stools were very soft, and as soon as I was eating, within the next couple of hours I was going to the toilet.”
The Brit had suffered from diverticulitis, a condition where the intestine becomes infected or inflamed and present symptoms such as abdominal pain, fever, nausea, and changes in bowel habits.
After paying his GP a visit, the former construction manager was sent on his way with a round of antibiotics for the suspected infection.
However, Lawrence's symptoms did not improve, though an endoscopy carried out in August 2024 did not show anything wrong.
At the same time, Lawrence was dealing with the fact his mother was dying of sepsis and thought the stone he'd lost in weight was due to the stress of his mom being seriously ill.
"I was more worried about my mum than I was," he recalled. "I was just glad I was getting it checked out.”
In December 2024, shortly after his mother passed away, a CT scan revealed a 75mm growth with Lawrence being told he had pancreatic cancer and would have nine months to live.
Doctors could not operate on the tumor because it was close to a main artery, so Lawrence began a course of chemotherapy.
Lawrence continued: "That wakes you up. My thought was – they obviously think I can take this chemo, and they wouldn’t be doing it if they didn’t think there was a chance of it doing something.
“So, I thought, if they’re going to give it to me, I’ve got to give it my all.”
Despite the devastating prognosis, Lawrence's cancer is no longer considered stage four as the tumor has shrunk to 15mm in size after 12 rounds of chemo.
He's now urging others to book a doctors appointment if they're concerned about any health worries.
"If you don’t feel right and it’s to do with digestion, if you keep getting indigestion or your bowel movements change for no apparent reason, get it checked out," Lawrence said.
“It might be something, and it might be nothing.
“It doesn’t cost you anything – just make the phone call to get it checked out.”
Callum Jones