Just one CLIC helps young Dudley mum in battle with rare bone cancer
A 23-year-old mother who is battling a rare form of bone cancer has called for a show of support on World Cancer Day.
Grace Nkounkou-Issombe and husband Ambrose Ogbechie from Crossgate Road, Dudley, had just welcomed their first child Austin into the world in May when Grace started to have difficulty walking.
A biopsy on a lump on her right femur in July, previously diagnosed as benign, was identified as the result of the rare bone cancer osteosarcoma.
Treatment started immediately at Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham.
Grace said: "The cancer didn't shock me but the thought I might not be around for my son, well, that really hurt me deeply. It made me feel so low.
"Since then my husband has had to be the mum of the baby really as I've been in hospital a lot with the treatment and infections, as the chemo I'm having is intense. I miss Austin so much when I can't see him."
"I almost died with one of the infections I had. I was in intensive care. But I'm not ready to die."
In December, alongside doctors, Grace made the difficult decision to have her leg amputated as the chemotherapy wasn't proving as effective as hoped.
Throughout this ordeal support for Grace and her family has been available from UK cancer charity CLIC Sargent, which has an independent team based at the hospital.
Now Grace is calling for people to buy CLIC Sargent charity Unity Bands and wear them with pride on World Cancer Day on February 4, to raise money to support other families during treatment.
Grace added: "When I met my CLIC Sargent social worker Sam I had no idea who he was. But he's made me change my views on social workers a lot.
"Sam listened to the things I was most worried about first – like paying our rent.
"Ambrose had to give up work to care for Austin and we were really struggling with money. But Sam knew everything about benefits we could claim, like personal independence payments, child benefit, carers allowance, we wouldn't have had a clue otherwise.
"And he gave me a CLIC Sargent grant of £170 which we used to help pay our rent that month."
CLIC Sargent's Social Workers also help young patients manage the emotional cost a cancer diagnosis brings.
Grace added: "It was so hard at first. I couldn't even imagine one day with cancer. When I was first on the ward, I had my hair and seeing all the others who were bald and looked ill made me feel funny about everything. I was able to talk to Sam about that.
"He's always there. I talk to him, cry to him, joke when I need to. He pushes me to stay positive.
"Cancer changes things. But I want people to know that cancer doesn't mean that your life is over. We're not just all lying down in a bed all day being ill. That's what people think. It is about fighting it and staying positive and it is a new opportunity for you to do better."
"Even though I had to have my leg amputated, by Christmas I was hopping around dancing, people couldn't believe it!"
"You have to stay positive and enjoy every moment - you are still you."