Dad and daughter diagnosed with cancer at the same time

Brave student Jessica Duffield pictured with her dad Keith who also has cancer
Brave student Jessica had to put her studies on hold after being struck down with breast cancer for the second time in three years – as her dad fights kidney cancer (Picture: BPM Media)

22-year-old Jessica Duffield has had to deal with a lot more than most people her age. As a student enjoying her first few years at university, she was sadly diagnosed with breast cancer.

At 19, Jessica, from Newcastle, had to put her studies on hold. And three years later, Jessica was struck down with breast cancer for a second time.

Jessica got the news last year that the cancer had returned and she has now been having radiotherapy.

Disastrously, her dad Keith, 54, has also been diagnosed with cancer – this time in the kidney – after medics found a tumour on his spine.

‘I will always have this cancer but, hopefully, I won’t die anytime soon,’ said Jessica. ‘I’m more likely to die getting hit by a bus.

‘You can’t really sit there feeling sorry for yourself. You wouldn’t get anywhere.’

Keith recalled how he went to hospital with a slipped disc, only to be diagnosed with kidney cancer.

The 54-year-old, from Chesterton, said: ‘I was having severe back pain – it was excruciating. I hadn’t slept properly for months and was struggling to move.

‘I was told it was probably a vitamin D deficiency, so my GP gave me vitamin D pills, but the pain was still there.

‘It was not until my family went with me to the GP and insisted I had a scan that I was put on the waiting list.’

Brave student Jessica Duffield at a charity gig
Jessica was 19 when she first got diagnosed (Picture: BPM Media)

Keith admits to feeling guilty about his own diagnosis at a time his daughter’s health is in a vulnerable state.

He added: ‘We’ve been really unlucky. At the time, the prognosis wasn’t good, so I was thinking how much should I tell Jessica.

‘I felt guilty for being in that position and for what it was doing to other people around me.

‘The cancer doesn’t seem to be spreading anywhere else, so I just want to keep going for decades. However, the statistics aren’t in my favour.’

Cousin Hannah Seabridge cried for a week after being told Jessica’s cancer had returned. She recently organised a gig at Knutton Ex-Servicemen’s Club which raised at least £1,200 towards Jessica’s dream holiday to Disneyland.

‘The 24-year-old, from Newcastle, said: ‘When Jessica first had breast cancer, she had chemotherapy and was really poorly. All her hair and eyelashes went.

‘When she was diagnosed, I thought “oh my God, she is going to have to go through that again”. It’s heartbreaking.

‘She has been unbelievably strong, and her mum and dad have been supporting her.

‘We spend as much time together as we can because we realise life is too short. You don’t know what’s around the corner.’

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source https://metro.co.uk/2020/01/13/dad-and-daughter-diagnosed-with-cancer-at-the-same-time-12048930/
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