Dear Family and Friends, 

Please help raise funds to give me the gift of my lifetime - a beautiful glass photographic portrait of myself by world-renowned portrait and fashion photographer Robbie Merritt - and support the work of an incredible local charity - Cancer Support WA.

Please show your support by sponsoring my portrait.

Thank you,

Judy Nash

My Story

I was first told that I had bowel cancer in May 2007 and an operation was scheduled for early June to hopefully remove the tumour, as I have acute emphysema with only around 25% lung capacity the operation was going to be a significant risk but I had little choice but to proceed. I spent 17 days in hospital followed by five months of Chemotherapy, my surgeon told me that it was touch and go during the surgery on a couple of occasions, fortunately for me and I’m sure in no small part due to his skill I survived the operation and woke up in intensive care. All appeared to be going well then around eleven months after completing the Chemo I developed a tumour on my abdomen, I then had a further six months of Chemo and six weeks of Radiation therapy and the tumour reduced in size.

In May 2008 my husband, my rock and head of my support team was diagnosed with Prostate cancer, fortunately it was contained with the prostate and he had it removed, the roles were then reversed and I became his support, it was difficult but we managed to get through this very rough period of our life.

In October 2009 we embarked on a wellness tour for eight months, we visited our daughter for Christmas in Tasmania who was just settling into her new house and I was able to contribute by making curtains and getting involved in girlie stuff.

January 2010 while still in Tasmania I had a CAT scan which revealed the tumour on my abdomen had returned, I had told my husband that morning it had returned as I could feel it! We packed up the van and quickly headed back home to WA.

Another surgery to remove the tumour and once again my lungs held out and I recovered, then it was another six months of Chemotherapy.

It’s now 2011 and all of the family are preparing to travel to Tasmania to celebrate our youngest daughters 40^th birthday, we were to leave on 15^th of January and travel by road to board the Ferry to Tassie on the 20^th. In late December I had a routine scan which indicated there might be something amiss at the site of my previous tumour so went in for a Colonoscopy on the day prior to leaving for Tassie, I was devastated to find out that the dreaded bowel cancer had returned. Prior to the Colonoscopy my surgeon came to tell me that due to the lateness of the procedure he was going to keep me in overnight, I held his hand and almost begged him to let me go home that night as it was my grandsons 18^th birthday and I wanted to attend his party, he said OK, still holding his hand I tested the limits and asked him if I could travel to Tassie for my daughters 40^th, he was not too keen on the idea but I assured him it would only be for two months and he said “go and enjoy yourself”.

I went home and spent a couple of hours at my grandsons party then the next day all our family members came and helped us pack up the van and we took off across the Nullarbor, we made it to the Ferry on time and had a wonderful twelve days with our three daughters. I was booked in to have the next operation on early March and unfortunately woke up with a colostomy bag and a severe lung infection, I had the bag removed in late September after having another seventeen days in hospital and a further three months of Chemotherapy, unfortunately the lung infection remains to this day as it is particularly resistant to antibiotics.

It will have been two years in September 2013 that I have been cancer free and I consider myself a very lucky lady, my youngest brother was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer on January 11^th 2012 and passed away on 20^th October, which has been particularly difficult to deal with!

Of the six siblings in my family five have been affected by aggressive forms of cancer, two of them succumbed to the disease and three of us continue to battle on, I guess one could say it appears to be “in the genes”.

Anyway I’m still here and very grateful to four wonderful Medicos, my Family Doctor, My Surgeon, My Oncologist and My Lung specialist.

“Life is precious and should never be taken for granted”

Thank you,

Judy Nash