A Kent dad was given just nine months to live after his indigestion turned out to be something much more serious
A dad was handed just nine months to live after his indigestion turned out to be a much more serious diagnosis. Lawrence Fox, 67, first realised something was amiss when food began coming ‘straight out’ of him in July 2024.
He said: “I wasn’t digesting my food properly, it was basically just coming straight out of me. One minute I’d want to go to the toilet, the next minute I’d have nothing, depending on when I’d eaten. I had the runs, my stools were very soft, and as soon as I was eating, within the next couple of hours I was going to the toilet.”
The former construction manager’s symptoms were initially attributed to a condition he had experienced previously, diverticulitis, where the intestine becomes infected or inflamed. Lawrence, from Canterbury, Kent, was prescribed a course of antibiotics for the suspected infection, but when his symptoms failed to improve, he was told to undergo an endoscopy.
However, when the procedure, performed in August that year, didn’t reveal anything, he had to wait until November for a CT scan. Making matters worse, Lawrence’s mother was dying of sepsis – meaning he had attributed some of his symptoms, such as losing a stone in weight, to stress.
He said: “At the time, I was more worried about my mum than I was. I was just glad I was getting it checked out.”
However, in early December, shortly after losing his mother, Lawrence received the devastating news that doctors had discovered a 75mm growth. He was diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer and given just nine months to live. As the tumour was positioned near a main artery, surgeons were unable to operate, and Lawrence was informed he would need to undergo chemotherapy.
Lawrence said: “That wakes you up. My thought was – they obviously think I can take this chemo and they wouldn’t be doing it if they didn’t think there was a chance of it doing something. So, I thought, if they’re going to give it to me, I’ve got to give it my all.”
According to the NHS, fewer than 10 per cent of people with the same diagnosis survive five years. After completing 12 rounds of chemo lasting nine hours a day, Lawrence’s tumour has shrunk to just 15mm – meaning his cancer is no longer classified as stage four.
The passionate golfer has even returned to the fairways – with assistance from a golf pro who adapted his swing to accommodate the catheter fitted for his chemotherapy. His 40-year-old son, Jamie, who lives with cystic fibrosis, was set to run the Brighton Marathon on Sunday, April 12, to raise funds for his father’s condition.
Lawrence has since resumed numerous activities, including Pilates, and hopes to take up swimming once more, thanks to support from Pilgrims Hospices. He is now urging anybody uncertain about their symptoms to seek medical advice without delay.
Lawrence said: “If you don’t feel right and it’s to do with digestion, if you keep getting indigestion or your bowel movements change for no apparent reason, get it checked out. It might be something and it might be nothing. It doesn’t cost you anything – just make the phone call to get it checked out.”
