A bus driver who thought he had simply wounded him who had raised a mattress is now fighting unbearable leukemia.
Terry Harper, from Chislehurst in southeastern London, began complaining about low back pain after carrying a vacuum -made mattress.
Initially, the 62-year-old was told that his back pain was a slippery disc-but the experiments later revealed that he had stage 3 of multiple myeloma.
“I can’t describe the emotional turmoil you spend when you think you have just become bad, and you are told that you eat cancer in your spine,” Mr Harper said. IndependentHuman
Mr Harper, who had previously worked because of his back pain and worked for his low back pain, recalled that he received a CT scan scan at the Prince University of South London in March 2022. He claimed that doctors said he had two slippery discs and should be better in six weeks.
However, more than six weeks later, in April 2022, he couldn’t get out of bed.
On the third day of his bed, his partner Della called 111 and he returned to the hospital to the hospital, where more experiments showed that he had numerous myeloma.
Mr Harper was told that the leukemia had been “in the vertebrae” in his spine and made him 4.5 inches shorter and his discs collapsed. It has also caused 12 tumors on his spine and causes osteoporosis, a disease that weakens the bones.
Multiple myeloma is a type of cancer that affects blood and bone marrow. NHS explained: This causes the bone marrow to create plasma cells, which are part of your immune system, which do not work properly. Bone pain, especially on the back, hips and ribs, fatigue, muscle weakness and headaches are all symptoms of myeloma.
Mr Harper initially underwent chemotherapy in December 2023, but in June this year, his cancer returned and he went back to chemotherapy.
The London bus driver, who goes to chemotherapy twice a week and still works for four days, said his crowded program “had put him on the ground”.
“I came home from work last week and my partner said,” You looked sick, you can’t fight chemotherapy, cancer and work. “
However, with a high cost of life, Mr Harper said he earned only 80 percent of his wages because the patient’s wages are not sufficient and £ 100 a week the benefits he has “did not cover the purchase bill”.
“I’ve been a bus driver for 20 years, they are watching me, I only do five hours a day, but again, I get less than half of what I have earned for money. Financially, it’s hard.”
His long -term partner, who is also a bus driver, works six days a week to help his expenses, but there is a lot of physical and financial effects.
Her daughter, Olivia Caterial, has launched a Gofundme page in hopes of collecting £ 1800 to help Mr Harper for some time, proper recovery from the cure and cover of basic home bills.
More than 33,000 people live in England with myeloma. Although the third common type of leukemia is often lost, myeloma is often lost because its symptoms, including low back pain, broken bones, fatigue and recurrent infection, are often vague and are often associated with general aging or minor conditions.
“Myeloma has one of the longest time to diagnose any cancer,” said Janice McCalloch, head of the leukemia charity, “early on it is very important, but we cannot do it alone and we need the government to prioritize recovery,” said Janice McCalloch, head of the leukemia charity.
“One of the biggest obstacles to diagnosis is the rapid identification of symptoms and before the damage is excessive injury.”
“We are sorry to hear that Mr. Harper was unhappy with his care,” said a spokesman for Prince Royal University Hospital.
“Myeloma’s leukemia can be very difficult, especially in its early stages. Patients are less likely to be 1 %, due to cancer when referring to a doctor and myeloma is rare and only 2 % of cancers are cancers,” she said.
“We will be pleased to discuss Mr. Harper’s case more on request.”
