Kevin Rodger -

It was Christmas 2021, I had the perfect life. A loving family, three young children, an amazing wife, good health and a successful career. And then everything changed.

It began with a sluggish feeling that wouldn't go away. Then intermittent pain in my right shoulder. I went to my GP who sent me for blood tests. Within days I had intense itching all over my body, the whites of my eyes were turning yellow, then dark urine and sudden extreme fatigue. The blood tests showed that my liver was malfunctioning. I went back to my GP who pushed for urgent scans. An ultrasound, MRI and CT scan swiftly followed. Suspected Cholangiocarcinoma. A word I couldn't even pronounce let alone spell!

In March 2022 my wife and I found ourselves in a hospital waiting room. Terrified but optimistic. Ten minutes later we were walking out of a consultant's room with a hastily drawn diagram having been told it's cholangiocarcinoma and in the worst possible place; wrapped around blood vessels making surgery impossible. Will I see my children grow up? The look said it all. Devastating.

Then a beacon of light. AMMF, is a gateway to specialists, clinical trials and others in the same situation. All of a sudden I had the confidence to challenge the opinion of local doctors who have little experience with this cancer and who appeared to have written me off. Knowledge is power and I can beat this thing.

Fast forward to January 2023, and I'm under one of the best medical teams in the UK, I have a treatment plan and completed eight cycles of chemotherapy. The cancer is retreating and I'm feeling good.

Thanks to AMMF, I can now navigate my way through the ups and downs whatever the future holds.
Kevin Rodger