Man told he had incurable cancer after holiday

A woman has described how her husband was diagnosed with incurable pancreatic cancer shortly after the couple returned from a walking holiday, and died just two weeks later.

Tacey Bain said David died at St Peter's Hospice in Bristol after what she described as a "classic" case of pancreatic cancer, adding: "You don't get any warning and you have to make the most of whatever time you have got."

The hospice said patients typically spend an average of 44 days in its care and it has launched a new fundraising campaign to support its work. David spent 12 days at the hospice.

Susan Hamilton, chief executive, said: "For us, our priority is to make those days, as meaningful as possible."

Tacey and David, 71, had been trekking along the Camino de Santiago when he first mentioned experiencing stomach discomfort.

She said his pain worsened during the trip and continued after they returned home.

Bain said: "He was in so much pain he asked me to ring the GP, [because] he couldn't manage the phone call."

Finally, after waiting three weeks, he received a biopsy. It confirmed he had a cancerous growth on his pancreas.

The couple were told by the hospital: "We can't do anything, you can't go home and we are looking for a hospice bed. Then he died a fortnight later" she said.

According to Cancer Research UK, pancreatic cancer is the fifth most common cause of death by the disease in the UK.

From 2022-2024 there were around 10,200 pancreatic cancer deaths in the UK every year, which is the equivalent of 28 deaths every day.

After five days at the hospice everything changed.

"The effect of the painkillers, medication and the disease was such that we had to stop all visitors," said Bain.

He then became "almost unable to communicate, it was that rapid."

Hamilton said many people still hold misconceptions about hospice care.

"There's a perception about hospices that it is all about dying but actually our teams of nurses and clinicians really try and take the burden away," she said.

"You can have the right quality of life and quality of death with the right teams around."

As a thank you for the charity's support, Bain is raising money for St Peter's Hospice and has decided to take part in the Tour de Bristol bike ride.

Its 44‑day appeal is calling on supporters to help ensure every family in the city can access vital end‑of‑life care.

Bain described her husband as someone who always fell asleep in his armchair after 10pm.

On the night he died, she told him she would sleep in the bed next to his.

"After a few minutes, I went back over to his bed and seen that he had gone," she said.

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