Lucy Rich
Cancer category: Carcinomas (except of skin)
Cancer type: Carcinoma of ovary and testis
Lucy, from Tonbridge in Kent, was diagnosed with an ovarian tumour at just 12 years old.
Lucy's story
I was treated at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London - it was alright, the staff were lovely and the food was good. But I was treated on a children’s ward and often had crying babies and toddlers keeping me awake at night. It’s hard enough going through treatment for cancer anyway but being in that kind of environment doesn’t really help keep your spirits up!
My treatment left me feeling really isolated and pretty depressed. It would have made such a huge difference to me if I could have been treated on a Teenage Cancer Trust unit. Just being able to meet people nearer my age who were going through similar treatment to me would have made things easier for me.
Luckily, after my treatment had finished, I found out about Teenage Cancer Trust’s conference for young people with cancer – Find Your Sense of Tumour. And oh my god, it was amazing! There were literally hundreds of people like me who knew what it was like to be a teenager with cancer – to have all your hair fall out, to have to miss loads of school, to be feeling sick and tired when all your friends are just leading their normal lives. My mum always says that Find Your Sense of Tumour was a massive turning point for me. I definitely agree – it really helped me to feel less alone and to be much more relaxed, confident and happy.
I believe that having cancer has changed me for the best. It’s made me realise more about life in a way. I lost a lot of friends through it, but made new ones too. It strangely made me more confident. At the beginning of my treatment my dad asked me did I want to keep a film diary - I said no because I was so self conscious about how my hair and face looked, but now I really wish I had filmed it, I think it would have been a interesting video to watch back. I’m really proud to have been involved in Teenage Cancer Trust’s film for the Royal Albert Hall shows in 2009 and I hope that anyone seeing it will have learned a bit about what it’s like having cancer when you’re a teenager.
I would say to other young people with cancer, don’t be frightened - the depression WILL pass, you’ll probably feel like nobody understands you, and you’ll almost certainly go quiet for a while. But as soon as the treatment’s over you’ll feel much more normal again. I have learnt how to treasure things, not take things or people for granted, and that any support is good. Just be determined to give it a good fight. And DON’T GIVE IN!”
