Max Hall - Age: 29

It was the summer of 2022 and I had just started living my life following a colostomy surgery in March due to ulcerative colitis. I had a yellow tinge to me and, despite my reluctance, my GP sent me straight to the hospital. I stayed in my local hospital for a week, being told I had primary sclerosing cholangitis before transferring to a specialist ward in Birmingham. That's when life flipped once again. On my own in a new city, at the age of 29, I got the news that I also had cholangiocarcinoma. A month of drains and stents followed before I was well enough to go home. Despite all the negatives, I felt fortunate, it had been caught where the plan could be surgery.

I returned to the hospital a month later and underwent a liver and portal vein resection. Recovery wasn't easy, the stay in the hospital lasted 3 months due to a stubborn infection around my liver and pneumonia. At times, I wasn't sure I could continue. But, with the support of my family and friends (not to mention the NHS), I recovered well enough to finally go home.

Despite the rough and whirlwind journey, I count my blessings; my liver is showing signs of regeneration, the surgeons believe they were successful in removing all the cancer and I enjoyed Christmas with my family. I've started chemotherapy on capecitabine and look forward to putting this chapter behind me.