I had a consultation on arrival at the clinic with Dr Julian Kenyon who examined my blood under microscope and I was scanned with the Oberon scanner. This showed the tumour site and gave an indication of my immunity levels. I then spent up to 2 hours using a pipette to put the algae under my tongue to ingest. I had been nil by mouth so the droplets ingested well as the idea was not to swallow them. Then I waited for two days for the algae to get to work on reaching the cancerous cells.

The treatment then began with obs taken and then a cannula put into a vein and a quantity of blood was removed; oxygenated and then put back into my vein. Not pleasant but the nursing staff were wonderful at distracting me as this happened. My mum also sat in with me during this procedure and kept me company.
Following this the light bed treatment commenced and for each day the amount of time under the lights increased. The algae having now reached the cancer cells becomes light sensitive and reacts to the light by hopefully being halted in their tracks as it were. This was followed by ultra sound over the tumour site and this treatment was carried out for three days each week. I then consumed the second dose of algae waited a further two days and so the treatment happened in the same way as the 1st week.

I saw Dr Kenyon at the end of the last day if treatment and was looked at under the Oberon scan once again. He said I’m a survivor and if he didn’t know I had cancer he wouldn’t have guessed it by looking at me so it was a good job we were on to it!

I have to return for a follow up consultation once two months have passed to be examined again as it won’t be clear what has happened to the cancer as the effects show the tumours to look bigger following treatment as a reaction to breaking down…. The treatment doesn’t profess to eradicate the tumour in all cases but if it can be stopped in its tracks and a semblance of a quality of life can be regained then this is progress. It might be that I would need a second course of the treatment in the future but I hope not. I don’t know yet what the future holds but I imagine it bright and I picture myself well which is the most essential part of being when fighting cancer. Think positive.

So in the meantime I sleep and follow what my body directs and continue on with my diet of vitamins and fresh fruit and vegetables. Although my energy is low at the moment I assume it needs rest and don’t argue with it.

I would recommend anyone who is going through something similar to read dr Bernie Siegel and do their best to become ‘an exceptional patient’ and don’t leave a stone unturned. Try everything possible don’t believe it when conventional medicine sends you home to die! Keep positive do something you love,whatever that may be, and keep on keeping on!

There are many naturopathic remedies available such as floressence tea, apricot kernels and many foods that are anti cancer such as beetroot, turmeric and berries. I consume these every day it’s time consuming but that is what I hope to have in future – ‘time’.

Heartfelt thanks to everyone who helped make this part of my journey possible through fundraising and such generosity. I couldn’t have done it without your help and good will. So thank you once again.

The best possible news for Patricia is to achieve the target amount and thanks to each and every single donor- you have done your bit to raise a huge £10,000 to pay for Patricia’s treatment for her Cancer to help prolong her life – each small or big donation has built to a fabulous total and is now enough to cover the medical process. This takes 2 weeks but there is still the expense of her travel to England and the accommodation for that period to find, so please feel free to help with that too! …………if you can or would like to……..

We have all worked very hard together and thanks to some larger donations recently we have just made the £10,000 target required to give Patricia the treatment she needs at the Dove Clinic.
She will be having the Sonadynamic/Photodynamic Therapy (SPDT)in the next few weeks and we wish her well during the process and we will keep you updated on her progress.

Thank you all

Patricia

Wednesday 5th September from 9PM, at the John Hewitt Bar, there will be a superb night of music in aid of the Patricia Locker Charity appeal. We are trying to get a little bit more in her fund so she can get life changing treatment in England for her Cancer. The line up is, The Couth Band, a post rock velvet undergroundy garage band, Barbara Neeson with her Melliflous dulcet tones, Jackie Rainey the extraordinary Belfast musician who knows how to get down and BOOOOOOGIE, the One and only Diva Du jour , MARI JACKSON, and her raunchy roof ripping vocals, and the finale will be the HARD CHARGERS, an awesome band of bluesy bluegrassy foot stomping hoedown hootnannyish typa thang. This will be an AWESOME gig and guess what, IT’S FREE IN, so all you have to do is get there, bring lots of loose change withya and DONATE what you can or we’ll beat you up and steal your lunch money (only joking about the implied physical threat lol).

Wednesday 5th September from 9PM, at the John Hewitt Bar, there will be a superb night of music in aid of the Patricia Locker Charity appeal. We are trying to get a little bit more in her fund so she can get life changing treatment in England for her Cancer. The line up is, The Couth Band, a post rock velvet undergroundy garage band, Barbara Neeson with her Melliflous dulcet tones, Jackie Rainey the extraordinary Belfast musician who knows how to get down and BOOOOOOGIE, the One and only Diva Du jour , MARI JACKSON, and her raunchy roof ripping vocals, and the finale will be the HARD CHARGERS, an awesome band of bluesy bluegrassy foot stomping hoedown hootnannyish typa thang. This will be an AWESOME gig and guess what, IT’S FREE IN, so all you have to do is get there, bring lots of loose change withya and DONATE what you can or we’ll beat you up and steal your lunch money (only joking about the implied physical threat lol).

It’s the morning after the night before, but there’s no headaches here! We’re up and smiling with the memories of last night’s gig!

We had the best weather of the summer so far to welcome you, all with a sunset you’d have paid for itself and from then on in, the night flew by. We couldn’t believe how generous you all were and yet how relaxed and enjoyable the evening was. You all dressed up and let your hair down and there was no spectre at the feast, just fun and thoughtfulness. It was just what we needed and such a boost to our system!

We can’t thank you enough for your support. We raised lots of money on the night but we haven’t managed to count it all yet. You have no idea how much it means to us. We’d like to thank you all for coming and we’d like to thank the people who made it all go so smoothly.

Thank you to the Barge themselves and the Galley staff for producing such lovely food and keeping us all comfortable with our Pimms. Thank you to all the performers for giving their time and being so brilliant. Thank you to Sean for doing the door all night and thank you to Valerie, Brian and Linda for their time and organisational skills. And thank you to everyone else who gave time on the night to help out. We couldn’t have done it without you!

We’ll be letting you know how much money you helped us raise, but in the meantime we’re having day or two off before we come back to with news of what’s happening next!

It’s here! It’s happening! It’s the day of our gig on the Belfast Barge! We could hardly sleep last night for excitement. It felt like Christmas Eve last night with the anticipation! But the big day is here and we are so looking forward to seeing you all…

It’s a chance to meet so many of the people who have supported us this far, get dressed up, have a wee dance and let our hair down for an evening. We want it to be fun and enjoyable rather than sombre and hushed. So get your dancing shoes on and get ready to have a good time!

It’s on a barge, there’s bands, there’s amazing ballot prizes and there’s cheese. What more could you want on a night out? And because we love you, we’ve made sure there are a few tickets available on the door tonight in case people want to come last minute. We can’t guarantee they’ll last long so come early to avoid disappointment and we can only accept cash on the night!

So get your dancing shoes on and we’ll see you from 6.30pm onwards! It’s going to be brilliant!

As we’ve mentioned before, the tickets for Wednesday night’s barge gig include food and a complimentary drink on arrival, but we thought you might like to know that the cafe will be serving a range of drinks throughout the night and that downstairs where the performances are happening, you can Bring Your Own!

That’s right, you don’t have to miss a moment of the acts on stage having to go and wait at the bar! You can bring your preferred tipple and stake your claim in the best spot for a boogie at the same time. But remember, if you BYO, you’ve got no excuse not to buy ballot tickets by the fistful!

It’s been an amazing weekend watching the Olympics. Usain Bolt caused parts of London to dance in the streets and the cheers to be heard half a mile from the stadium as he raised the roof. Andy Murray caused mass weeping with his gold and Mo Farah made a nation very proud.

But in amongst all the elation and excitement, we’ve been thinking about all the other people whose lives are also so focused and full of hard work and emotional commitment because they are ill. There is no expression more apt than ‘as long as you’ve got your health…’

Hundreds of people each week in the UK are diagnosed with cancer and overnight their lives change. They have to develop the kind of focus of a gold medallist in order to be able to keep the familiarities of their old life and the fear and uncertainty of their new life. They are forced to comtemplate their mortality and become harbingers of doom to those they love, breaking news of bad things. Everything is new and uncertain and you’re set on a path you have no map for as you try to navigate the bureaucracy of sick leave, benefits, the NHS and insurance policies. Emotions are heightened and swirl anxiously as you aim for each event and treatment with a steely-mindedness of a sportsman. Everything takes all your energy at a time when ill health depletes it.

Just like the Olympics are being made so much easier and organised by the GamesMakers who have come out clad in purple and enthusiasm, it’s the other people who have experienced cancer that help ease the difficulty for the those currently fighting it. They offer advice, experience and show that people can and do come through this illness. They are invaluable. Combined with friends and family being supportive, it’s like having that home crowd cheer you on!

In the week that we are receiving so much love and support to raise money for Patricia’s appeal, we want to remind everyone else out there in a similar situation that we’ve thinking of them and although we’re specifically raising money for Patricia, we’re doing the benefit for everyone touched by cancer. Please show your support by coming along or buying tickets or even just asking someone you know in a similar situation what you can do to help. Strength in this situation comes from numbers and we have more to win than medal if everyone helps….

Yesterday we took some time off to breathe and reboot after the events of the past week. We’ve met some fascinating people, received support from places we could never have imagined and have planned lots more. But one thing we haven’t done until now is work out eaxctly how much money we’ve raised. So we had a look at our running total and…

We’ve raised £5425.97 of our target of £12000!

With each ballot and barge ticket you’ve bought or individual donation you’ve made, Patricia’s treatment comes closer. We’ve got some costs to cover for the event, so not all that money is for the treatment, but is there to help us raise more funds. But suddenly this is really real. Patricia can see that the treatment at the Dove Clinic is within touching distance. She’s trying not get her hopes up too much, but she and her son are excited and hopeful for the future.

Please continue to support us. You are making a huge difference and changing Patricia’s life. Keep buying tickets or perhaps volunteer to sell some too? Email us for more information. If you’ve promised a donation to one of the team, actually click that button and we’ll see you on the barge to all let our hair down and have some fun!