My name is Victoria and I’ve been working at Acomb dental care on and off for the last 22 years, as a dental nurse. While I have been working with Lynda and the team, I have been married, and had 4 children – all boys! Thomas is the eldest, now 19 years old, followed by Harry (18), Sam (15) and Oliver (12). Two years ago, when Tom was 16, we had the devastating news that he had been diagnosed with a rare and aggressive teenage cancer. Nothing can prepare you for it, but when it comes and you have got over the initial shock, you just have to get on with dealing with it, and that is exactly what we did. Tom was extremely courageous throughout. He had to go through numerous surgeries, and a very aggressive regime of chemotherapy and radiotherapy, which involved a lot of time as an inpatient in Leeds general infirmary on the teenage cancer unit.
Someone gave us some very good advice when Tom was first diagnosed, he said ‘don’t even take it one day at a time, take it one second at a time’, and really that was the only way we could cope. Anyway, we did get through all Tom’s treatment, he did really well, and after a year of chemotherapy, he finally had his last treatment. He had to go every 3 months last year for m.r.i scans and chest X-rays, and we’ve just started going every 4 months for 2 years, and then it will be every 6 months for the last 2 years, and if we get through all that, the doctors say his cancer shouldn’t come back.
While Tom was going through all his treatment, the Candlelighter’s charity, based in Leeds, were a lifeline. They do so much to make the lives of the children and teenagers suffering from and being treated for cancer, a little easier. From bringing platefuls of tempting goodies around to every child, every day just to try and tempt them to eat, to paying for families of children on treatment to have a holiday. They organise evenings at the cinema, days out at sporting events and so much more. They help families financially too. When your child is that ill, quite often one parent will have to give up work to be with their child, and the financial burden can be huge.
We have already had a couple of fundraising events for Candlelighter’s, but this time Thomas and his dad have decided to jump out of an aeroplane at 15000 feet, to try and raise some money for Candlelighter’s, and give something back. They are doing their skydive on the 26th March, and both have ‘Just giving’ pages. If you would like to help them raise money for this fantastic local charity, then please donate to Tom Dibbs’ Just giving page
Every penny raised will help to make life a little easier for a child suffering from cancer.
Tom, his dad and little brother Oliver, about to go up in a light aircraft, on a family fun day organised by Candlelighter’s.
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