Please can you help Camilla and her family

Camilla, Ian and one-year-old Joshua need our support. Their world has come crashing down after a shocking leukaemia diagnosis.

 

Where to begin? There’s a lot to say. Cam has been in the Bristol Royal Infirmary since the day she gave a blood sample on the 6th December 2021; such was the urgency of the situation. She has a particularly acute form of Leukemia requiring immediate action (it’s called Acute Myeloid Leukemia). So as soon as she was ready, Cam underwent the first of an intensive 10-day programme of intravenous chemotherapy, which finished on Boxing Day.

 

Soon after, with absolutely no immunity and experiencing all the well-known side effects of chemo, Cam was diagnosed with Sepsis resulting from a severe infection. She was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit and, whilst there, went into Septic Shock. It was devastating. Cam’s organs were failing her, and she was placed on life support. A tortuous fourteen days passed.

 

Cam, my absolute hero, fought back and on the 19th January started coming off the mechanical ventilator and dialysis. That was a momentous day! But of course, Cam is now dealing with the consequences. The psychological effect of her near-death experience requires counselling. Still in ICU her body is repairing itself as best it can and the Consultant has said that the mental and physical side effects could be far-reaching.

 

It’s an understatement to say that this has been a setback in her cancer care… Cam very nearly died from Sepsis yet her life remains in danger from cancer. So while Cam deals with the after-shock of Sepsis, her medical team is back preparing for the next, seriously interrupted stage of her cancer treatment.

 

The chemo Cam had over Christmas for the Leukemia has proven to have been extremely successful, which, whilst wonderful news in itself, is sadly not the end of it. Unfortunately, with her Leukemia (AML), there’s a very real chance of cancer returning. The only way to keep it at bay is to hit Cam with another round of chemo starting as soon as she can stand it. However, chemo will be a temporary fix until the main problem, her bone marrow, is addressed. So a bone marrow transplant is pretty much inevitable, and this is the likely long term treatment for her. How much can one body be put through!?

 

And that brings me to another matter. After Cam had completed her first round of chemo and just hours before she lost consciousness, she told me how worried she was about money - with good reason. It seemed like it was preoccupying her more than the cancer itself! And shortly after she came off the ventilator, with every word difficult to express, she asked her sister again about money – about how to pay for Josh’s nursery and their mortgage.

 

All the time Cam has been in hospital it has been (and will continue to be) nigh on impossible for Ian to work. He’s currently a single dad to an eight-year-old and one-year-old who’s sleeping badly, teething, and in and out of nursery with the usual colds and temperatures. Plus, Ian is the only person allowed to visit Cam - which involves a three hour round trip. That means no opportunity to earn money. And of course, Cam’s new role in the family business that she came back to after a year’s maternity leave was put on hold just weeks after it started.

 

Such anxiety about money won’t do Cam’s health any good. As you can imagine, family, friends and colleagues have already stepped in to provide physical and financial support. But let’s face it, the more the better - every contribution, however small, will make a real difference.

 

Speaking for myself, I have hated feeling so helpless, so my own donation feels like, and is, a practical act. Such gestures tell Cam that ‘we’ve got her back’. It will be money well spent, going towards the mortgage on their home and Joshua’s nursery fees. His time there is proving essential while he’s separated from his mummy - this gorgeous boy is dealing with his own anxieties. And I don’t know where to begin trying to describe Ian’s feelings right now, so I won’t!

 

We really don’t know what the future will look like for this family. But for now, thank you so much for your support.

 

Sally x

 

(Friend and colleague)

 

Photo: Cam outside the BRI, overjoyed to see one-year-old Joshua and Ian just before her initial chemotherapy treatment started in December.