Jim Clark - Age: 49
Jamie Clark - Jim, will be forever 49.
Jim started to feel 'a little' out of sorts in October 2023 and was really struggling with overwhelming tiredness and weight loss, a self-employed builder, who enjoyed a weekend game of football for a local veteran's team, and especially enjoyed the social side afterwards, he headed to the doctors. They sent him for a few blood tests, all came back clear. In November he went back to the doctors as was suffering fluid build-up, and by this point was not managing to work past 10am each day.
Still the tests his doctor's surgery was sending him for were coming back clear, and we were told it didn't look like cancer, but possibility of liver disease and needed to make lifestyle changes, we were left feeling very frustrated and that he was not being listened to or believed. We kept on at the doctor, by this stage, he had a lot of fluid build-up, discomfort in the stomach area, and itchy skin, he had previously complained of shoulder pain but had not connected. A scan had shown hydrocoeles, and the doctors eventually referred him to Urology and a liver team at Southampton General Hospital, whilst giving him morphine for the pain to help get us through Christmas.
The Urology appointment happened on the 5th of Jan 2024, and the consultant was amazing. He completed bloods and a CT scan. He delivered the news that it looked like liver cancer, with something possibly on the lungs, and that Jim would need to be urgently seen, and a biopsy would need to take place, as it was currently registered as cancer primary unknown. Because we had an appointment booked with Hepatology for the 22nd of Jan, no other appointments or teams were in touch with us - it felt like a very long wait of being in limbo. Following this appointment, we were referred for a biopsy, this happened on the 9th of Feb 2024. On the 31st of Jan, Jim was taken by ambulance, and we had to argue to be seen in acute oncology, as he didn't have a tissue diagnosis, he was not considered a cancer patient. He had 12.5 litres of fluid drained from his stomach, and this started a journey of regular emergency trips, until he had a permanent drain fitted, which he could then have drained at home. He was amazing with this and embraced doing this himself.
On the 19th of February 2024 at a Hepatology appointment, we were told that it was Cholangiocarcinoma, and that there would be an MDT meeting, and in the meantime, for the best information we would need to look at the AMMF website. Fortunately for us, we had a relative that worked within the hospital, and she pulled some strings and we were seen by Cancer care 2 days later, it was at this appointment, we were told that it was Metastatic Cholangiocarcinoma, (started in bile duct, and moved to liver, stomach lining, lungs and probably bones) and that we would be looking at palliative care, or chemotherapy, but there would be no cure. Jim fought hard for chemo to be considered, I think he wanted to know that he had tried everything, they offered him 12 rounds of Chemotherapy, but he did not qualify for immunotherapy. They offered 4 cycles of gemcitabine and cisplatin over 12 weeks of treatment. Jim only made one round, before we had to seek hospice support. Sadly, for us Jim's diagnosis was too late, and only 4 weeks later, Jim lost his brave battle.
Jim died 23rd March 2024.
Dearly loved and forever in our hearts.
