Sharing my experience of Hospice care

Mick Hollingworth is a lorry driver from Dagenham. He is living with prostate and bone cancer and refuses to let his illness get him down. Here he shares his journey from diagnosis and how a short stay on the ward at Saint Francis Hospice has helped to get his pain under control and get him back on his feet again.

In early 2019 I started to get pains in my stomach and back. Then one day I went to the loo before going to work and was so frightened when blood came out everywhere. I went to A&E and a scan revealed that I had prostate cancer.

Chemotherapy and radiotherapy followed at Queen’s Hospital. The consultant used to call me Stobart because I worked as a lorry driver.

I had also been struggling to walk but after every chemotherapy treatment I felt better and by the fifth round of chemotherapy, the consultant said, “You’ve done something remarkable; you seem to have beaten prostate cancer!”

I went back to lorry driving but the pain returned in my leg and further tests showed that the cancer had spread to my bones and was incurable.

All the way through I decided I was not going to get sad.  One day I was going to have treatment at Queen’s Oncology Unit when I took a wrong turn and went on to a children’s cancer ward. I was 59 at the time - at least I got to get married and have children but what about these poor children? I had a lot to be grateful for.

The guys at work say used to say to me, I have never met anyone as brave as you. It is nothing to do with being brave. The biggest thing that hurts in cancer treatment is the injections I have in my stomach. The radiotherapy and chemotherapy didn’t hurt, although some of it makes you sick. It is important that you do not give up - if you give up in your mind, you are in serious trouble.

My referral to Saint Francis Hospice

I was initially referred to Saint Francis Hospice by my District Nurse in 2019. The Hospice’s community nursing team got in touch and I received regular calls from Josh and Kathy who would check in on me and ask if I needed any help and ask how I was doing. It was wonderful to know I could just ring up if I needed to.

At that time, I was getting better. I was back at work as a supervisor and my job really gave me a purpose so I didn’t need any further support.

That was 18 months ago and I remember Josh telling me that the Hospice was always here if I needed care in the future.

After a two week stay at King George Hospice, I was transferred to the Hospice in September as I was having excruciating pain in my leg and couldn’t walk. I had never been to the Hospice before but when they wheeled me on to the ward, I felt like I was in heaven. It was so calm and peaceful and everyone was so attentive.

Mick with Klaire, Josh and Sarah who helped care for him at the Hospice

The best care

I had no fear whatsoever. I just knew I would get the best treatment and be seen by the best consultants and doctors who would be able to help me with the pain I was suffering.  

It was a place where I feel at ease. I knew if I pressed the buzzer, a nurse would come. I had a great laugh and joke with all the staff - they all had time for me.  The volunteers would come around and ask what I would like to eat. Klaire, one of the therapists, would massage balms into my legs and the physiotherapists helped me to walk again.

What’s more, the Hospice has cared for me more than just physically. I felt happy in myself too. My son came to visit and he was totally amazed. He said, “Dad, how did you get to come to a place like this?”

It was like being at home when I was a kid. I felt as though I had been there for ages and I had done this before. It was so strange.