A brave mum died from a cancer so rare that some of the nurses had never even heard of it.
Lesley Turner was just 40 when she died on July 22 last year, having been diagnosed with rare cancer angiosarcoma in November 2021 after finding a lump in her breast. The mum-of-one asked doctors not to tell her how much time she had left when doctors told her the cancer was 'incurable'.
Now her husband, Rob, is planning to honour her dying wish by raising money for the hospice that cared for her, reports YorkshireLive. During trips to Sheffield's Northern General and Weston Park hospitals, the couple realised the cancer was so rare that some of the nurses had never even heard of it.
Rob, 41, said: "We knew pretty quickly that it was serious. However Lesley, just smiled and said, 'I'm still here.' She had chemotherapy for about four months but she always had a smile on her face and said 'if you don't laugh, you'll cry' - so we tried to just get on with it."
Mum-of-one Lesley spent the last five days of her life at St Luke's Hospice and made Rob 'promise' if he did any fundraising, he would do it for the hospice. Rob said: "They took really good care - not only of Lesley but all the visitors including me. They gave me a bed and fed and watered me - they took really good care of everybody."
Rob and Lesley, who have a son together - eight-year-old Liam - met in Glasgow, Scotland, in 2007. Rob was fitting out an Iceland store where Lesley - originally from Stranraer - was the store manager, and the pair began to hit it off.
After finishing the job and before heading back to Sheffield, smitten Rob left his future wife an Easter egg with a note attached, reading 'hope to see you seen'. He said: "We started texting each other and for a good year we were up and down visiting each other. After a year we said we would make a go of it.
"I said I'd move up to Glasgow but Lesley said I wouldn't last five minutes, so she moved here to Sheffield." The pair then bought their first house together and were married on June 14, 2014 at Stannington Church. Describing Lesley, Rob said: "She was kind. She only found the fun side of things - she was just fun and brilliant to be around She was genuine person, not fake. And she always let you know how she felt."
Speaking about their son Liam, Rob said: "It's been tough for him but he has lots of friends at school helping him and a loving family around him - but with Mother's Day coming up and cardmaking at school he's feeling it a bit more. He's getting through it with my help and with help from his grandparents."
Rob, keeping his promise to Lesley, has raised nearly £4,500 with a GoFundMe campaign - smashing his original goal of £3,500. He has also organised a golf tournament at Hillsborough Golf Club on May 12.
Having sold all 100 tickets already at £50 each, Rob hopes to raise £10,000 in total for St Luke's.
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