Bradley’s Story

Bradley’s Story

Described as a lovely guy who was very witty and liked by everybody, Bradley was just 46 when he was diagnosed with appendix cancer that had spread to his bowel. The diagnosis came as a huge shock to Bradley and everybody around him. He was very fit, working in a job he loved as a personal trainer, and enjoying life as a family with his partner, Laura, and their young son.   

Laura and Bradley had met in a pub and were together for 18 years. After undergoing IVF, the pair were delighted to welcome their son, Mason, in 2019. Laura describes the arrival of Mason, as the making of them. With their home together, their son and their dog, Benson, Laura and Bradley settled into family life.  

So when Bradley started suffering with excruciating stomach pains in April 2022, the pair were understandably concerned. Doctors operated on what they thought was a twisted bowel, only to discover during surgery that they were dealing with more than they thought. 

His wife, Laura, tells their story. 

“On the day of the surgery my son had a special event at his nursery. I was there with him, which helped to take my mind off the fact that Bradley was in theatre. I was waiting for a call to say it was all done and we could pick him up. But I actually got a call asking me to come in.  

“My mum works in a hospital and said ‘they don’t usually ask people to come in if the operation has gone well’ so she encouraged me to take someone with me. I took a relative and we were actually surprised they let us both in the room – as this was at the tail end of the Covid pandemic – but still I didn’t grasp the enormity of what they were about to say.  

“The doctors sat us down and told us that they had gone in and found a big mass on his bowel. Which was stage 4 cancer.  

“I shut down once I heard the words cancer. It’s all a blur after that.” 

“After that Brad had major surgery to try and remove the cancer. It was a huge operation to recover from and he took time at home to rest and recover. The couple hoped there might be an option of another surgery to try and fully remove everything. But sadly it was growing and spreading too fast.  

“He did have chemotherapy and at first doctors thought it was effective. But just a month later they delivered the devastating news that it was no longer working.  

“At the point that the tumours spread into his kidneys, Bradley was admitted to hospital. His kidneys had started to fail and we were told he had only 24 or 48 hours to live. We were absolutely devastated.  

Being cared for in our IPU

“There was a lovely nurse at the hospice who put us in contact with Peace Hospice. And Bradley was moved to the Peace Hospice Inpatient Unit the day after his birthday.  

“As soon as we got there, it felt like a home from home. The place was very calm and peaceful and the staff were all so kind and friendly. Everybody there was always trying to make him comfortable. They were completely on top of his medication. If he was in pain, they would get it under control. They weren’t intrusive but if he needed anything, we knew they would be straight on it.  

“The staff would encourage him to eat and really took the time to try and offer things he would want to eat. By this stage he wasn’t really eating but we knew it was always available.  

“Even for me and the family – they offered to feed us dinner and we knew there was a place to make a cuppa or to go and relax in the relatives area.” 

Planning an IPU wedding

Bradley and Laura had been engaged for a number of years but with a global pandemic, the rigours of IVF treatment and other family tragedies, they had never got round to actually tying the knot. When they knew that time was short for Bradley, the couple talked about it and decided to get married.  

“It was a very quick decision and we had nothing planned. So, on the morning of Friday 3 March 2023, I walked round to the registry office in Watford. And by 1pm that day, it was all confirmed. I went home to get ready and we were married in the outpatients’ lounge at Peace Hospice at 5.30pm that day.” 

Erin Beer was the manager of the Peace Hospice Inpatient Unit at the time. She recalls:  

“Bradley had only been with us for a couple of days by this point so the wedding came out of the blue. But as a team we’re really good at just making things happen for our patients. So when Laura told us about the wedding, we all rallied around to make it happen.  

“As a team we aim to please. We all do this job because we want to help people to get the best out of every day when they’re living with a serious illness and to make memories with the people they love. When we have a request like this, everybody in the building pulls together to make it happen. It’s so lovely to see.  

“On the day of Laura and Bradley’s wedding, Laura was at the registry office arranging everything and Bradley said he wanted to take a bath. He hadn’t been strong enough to get into the bath up to this point but we could see how important it was to him, so the team really focused on helping him achieve his goal. Together, they did it! And Bradley got to have his soak in the spa bath with music playing and candles flickering, to relax and feel like himself again.  

“After that he had his mates in his room, helping him to get ready. In the meantime, one of our colleagues went to the nearest supermarket to buy things to make the day special. She bought prosecco for them to celebrate and sweets to make a sweet station as well as decorations for the room. I stayed in the patient lounge with others in the team and we rearranged the furniture so we had an alter and an aisle for the ceremony. We put up wedding banners and balloons and made the place as lovely as we could for them.” 

Laura says: 

“When I got back to the hospice for the ceremony, I couldn’t believe what they had done! The room looked so lovely. They had bought prosecco and a cake and I was so touched by how the staff had gone above and beyond to make this possible for us.  

“It was so rushed that I didn’t have time to let many people know it was happening. But the hospice was happy for as many people as we wanted to be there.  

“The ceremony took place at 5.30pm with our closest family and our son there. It was a really special and emotional time.”

IPU manager, Erin, adds: 

“After the wedding Bradley was tired and went back to his room. But we were happy for their family and friends to stay and celebrate for as long as they wanted.  

“We could see that this was very important to Bradley, and to Laura, and to us that’s what matters. As a hospice we’re not just here to manage people’s physical symptoms. We’re here to help them get the most out of every day – whatever that means for them. For one person it might be getting showered and dressed so they feel up to having visitors, or it could be arranging for a VIP visitor or beloved pet to come in. We’ll always go the extra mile to make these things possible as we see each person who walks through the doors as a whole person, not just a patient with symptoms.” 

Bradley stayed in the Peace Hospice Inpatient Unit until he sadly died on 8 March 2023. 

Laura says:

“We knew that our family and friends were welcome to visit at any time of the day and night – the staff even brought us bedding if we needed it, so we could stay the night. Our son, Mason, was staying with my parents so I could spend as much time as possible with Brad. We knew that he, too, was welcome to visit. He didn’t need to stay in Brad’s room – he could go and explore the unit and it was never a problem.  

“Bradley had so many friends. He was loved by everybody he met. So during his time at Peace Hospice he had friends in and out the whole time visiting him. Some people might not have wanted a lot of people to see them at that stage of life but not Bradley – he wanted their visits. His attitude was ‘as long as I’m living, I want people to come and visit me’. 

“On the day he died, though, it was just me and him together for most of the day. He was still able to have a bit of a joke with the nurses even though he was very weak by this point. Before I left I took a photo of him. It’s one of those ‘live’ photos so when you watch it there’s an extra frame at the end, and in that frame he gives me a thumbs up. He died in his sleep that evening. And I only noticed the live photo afterwards. That brings me comfort – I think he was telling me he was ready to go.”