Give4Greg
Donation protected
Greg Gilbert is known to many as the singer and guitarist of the band Delays and as an artist. To me, he is my fiancée, my joint adventurer through life but most importantly, the daddy to our two baby girls Dali (3) and Bay (1). He has recently been diagnosed with stage 4 bowel cancer that has spread to his lungs and to our horror has been told that the NHS is limited in what they can do to save him.
The very worst news
Greg has been treated for IBS for a while and his GP didn’t think it was a major issue. Gastro consultants and dieticians had confirmed the IBS diagnosis. At the end of October, Greg was experiencing some severe abdomen pains and vomiting that led him to be admitted to A&E. After an x-ray, we were told that they had a found a cancerous blockage in his bowel. After further investigation, we were told the devastating news that the bowel cancer has also spread to his lungs and because of the extent of these tumours, they would only be able to offer him a 12 week course of chemotherapy as he is currently not a candidate for surgery to remove the primary tumour in his bowel. We were told this heart breaking news on our daughter Bay’s 1st birthday. I cannot put into words the terror and shock of this moment. To hear Greg ask the consultant how long he had left to live is the darkest moment of my life and something that will haunt me forever.
We have also had the terrible news that Greg is genetically incompatible with the only free immunotherapy drug available on the NHS. There are other drugs that would match his gene profile, most notably Avastin for advanced bowel cancers, but it is currently not funded by the NHS.
Our hope for the future
However, we are not prepared to accept this bad news lying down. Greg is an otherwise fit and healthy 39-year old man who has never smoked, taken drugs and has rarely even drunk alcohol. Through extensive research and correspondence with specialist clinics in the UK and abroad, we have discovered new and groundbreaking treatments. These are targeted treatments such as stereotactic radiotherapy, microwave ablation and personalised immunotherapy. These have had astounding results on others that share the same prognosis as Greg. The treatments are currently not offered on the NHS due to not meeting their cost efficiency criteria. We have always been huge advocates for the NHS but this is just heartbreaking - I just cannot let Greg die and our daughters grow up without their daddy because of money.
We need help
These treatments are expensive. We are using all of our own money but it is nowhere near enough. Like most people in the UK, we have no private medical insurance so it is hard to comprehend that we need to raise at least £100,000 to give Greg any chance of survival. Greg has begun his chemotherapy but we need money to be able move quickly when this finishes in mid March.
I know Greg will not mean the same to you as he does to me but I know his music and art have touched people all over the world. He has so much left to give – Delays have new songs that they want to release and tour, he has sketchbooks filling our home with ideas for drawings and paintings and of course, we have 2 baby girls who absolutely adore him. We desperately need him to be here to watch them grow up.
The supportive messages we have received from around the world are lifting Greg each day and keeping us positive. We are desperate to make this Christmas special for our girls and go into 2017 with hope for the future. We are so thrilled by the requests we have had about organising fundraising events which we welcome and encourage any ideas to help our cause.
We would be so grateful for your support and generosity. We cannot do this without your help, which is why I am asking for you to share our page, spread the word and please donate whatever you can to help me save the life of the most magical person I have ever known.
The very worst news
Greg has been treated for IBS for a while and his GP didn’t think it was a major issue. Gastro consultants and dieticians had confirmed the IBS diagnosis. At the end of October, Greg was experiencing some severe abdomen pains and vomiting that led him to be admitted to A&E. After an x-ray, we were told that they had a found a cancerous blockage in his bowel. After further investigation, we were told the devastating news that the bowel cancer has also spread to his lungs and because of the extent of these tumours, they would only be able to offer him a 12 week course of chemotherapy as he is currently not a candidate for surgery to remove the primary tumour in his bowel. We were told this heart breaking news on our daughter Bay’s 1st birthday. I cannot put into words the terror and shock of this moment. To hear Greg ask the consultant how long he had left to live is the darkest moment of my life and something that will haunt me forever.
We have also had the terrible news that Greg is genetically incompatible with the only free immunotherapy drug available on the NHS. There are other drugs that would match his gene profile, most notably Avastin for advanced bowel cancers, but it is currently not funded by the NHS.
Our hope for the future
However, we are not prepared to accept this bad news lying down. Greg is an otherwise fit and healthy 39-year old man who has never smoked, taken drugs and has rarely even drunk alcohol. Through extensive research and correspondence with specialist clinics in the UK and abroad, we have discovered new and groundbreaking treatments. These are targeted treatments such as stereotactic radiotherapy, microwave ablation and personalised immunotherapy. These have had astounding results on others that share the same prognosis as Greg. The treatments are currently not offered on the NHS due to not meeting their cost efficiency criteria. We have always been huge advocates for the NHS but this is just heartbreaking - I just cannot let Greg die and our daughters grow up without their daddy because of money.
We need help
These treatments are expensive. We are using all of our own money but it is nowhere near enough. Like most people in the UK, we have no private medical insurance so it is hard to comprehend that we need to raise at least £100,000 to give Greg any chance of survival. Greg has begun his chemotherapy but we need money to be able move quickly when this finishes in mid March.
I know Greg will not mean the same to you as he does to me but I know his music and art have touched people all over the world. He has so much left to give – Delays have new songs that they want to release and tour, he has sketchbooks filling our home with ideas for drawings and paintings and of course, we have 2 baby girls who absolutely adore him. We desperately need him to be here to watch them grow up.
The supportive messages we have received from around the world are lifting Greg each day and keeping us positive. We are desperate to make this Christmas special for our girls and go into 2017 with hope for the future. We are so thrilled by the requests we have had about organising fundraising events which we welcome and encourage any ideas to help our cause.
We would be so grateful for your support and generosity. We cannot do this without your help, which is why I am asking for you to share our page, spread the word and please donate whatever you can to help me save the life of the most magical person I have ever known.
Organizer
Stacey Heale
Organizer