The daughter of a mum who thought she had a “virus in the stomach” has spoken about the heartbreak her family went through when they found it was cancer.
Kayleigh Cross-Berry’s mum, Dianne Berry, was diagnosed with gallbladder cancer when she was 60 years old. The diagnosis came at a time when “emotions were heightened” for the retired operations manager as it was just a few weeks shy of Christmas in 2021.
Initially, Dianne was led to believe she had a virus which “wouldn’t go away” before being told it was gallstones. However, after managing to get an appointment with a consultant, the family were told there were “suspicious things” within the gallbladder.
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Kayleigh, a 36-year-old lead business analyst, told the ECHO: “We went through a lot of emotions because we were told not to worry and that it was just gallstones but to then find out it was cancerous was devastating, especially just before Christmas.
“As it was a cancer we never hear about, the first thing I did was Google and to see the expectation of life with gallbladder cancer and that not many people survive after two years, we knew instantly this was going to end up as a tragedy for our family. My mum was the centre of our family. It ripped us apart but also brought us closer in the short time we had battling it with her.”
At first, Dianne was told she had two years left to live and with this in mind, the family came together to make as many memories as possible. Kayleigh recalls how they began cherishing the little things such as Sunday lunches together and family trips away.
Despite everything Dianne’s “main aim” was to make it to her daughter’s wedding. Sadly, she died just three weeks before, aged 61. Kayleigh had a photo of her mum wrapped around her bridal bouquet, and another picture placed on the bar so “everyone could raise a toast” to her whenever they got their drinks.
Kayleigh, who is from Northwich and her partner from Anfield, said: “It was a lot to process, especially because she was so involved in my wedding and we were due to get married the year before but because of Covid it was postponed. I started thinking if it wasn’t postponed she would have been there for it. The positive we had with it being postponed was she knew every detail. She’d seen me in the dress, she’d seen all the bridesmaids and the flowers - she had a fingerprint on every last detail.”
Now, again in memory of her mum, Kayleigh, alongside her sister-in-law and two nieces are taking part in Clatterbridge’s Glow Green Night Walk. The group will be joining up to 1,000 others to walk through the city centre past illuminated buildings to mark World Cancer Day and to say thanks for the incredible care that The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre provides.
While everyone has their own reasons for joining the walk, Kayleigh’s is because of how special Clatterbridge made the last few days she had left with her mum.
She said: “It was a quick decline for us but they still went above and beyond for her. They just worked nonstop. The last five days having my mum home, we could never repay. She sat and listened to her favourite music in her favourite room and the grandkids could pop in and out.
"It was summer so the doors were open and she could hear them playing in the garden and laughing. Even though she wasn’t always responding, I just know those five days at home with us were priceless. Not just for her, but for us. You hear so many stories about chemo but my mum always came back smiling. The nurses just made her laugh, they were singing and giving her positivity and hope and hope is everything when you’re battling.”
Kayleigh and her family are hoping to raise money as well as awareness of gallbladder cancer. She added: “Raising the awareness is key because if one person hears a story from another family and goes and gets checked out and just gets that extra time with their family, then I think that's the aim of these events.”
Joining the walk on Friday, February 3, is also Olympic gold medallist Sam Quek. The BBC Morning Live presenter will be amongst those setting off from the Museum of Liverpool and will be taking to the stage to count down walkers at the starting line.
While the evening is set to be filled with music and laughter, there is time to reflect too as hundreds of lanterns will be displayed on the steps of Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral, along with messages of thanks, hope and love.
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