Garry Birtles

[jonnyt1]

So sad to hear he's lost his wife to Pancreatic Cancer at just 56 years of age.

It's very poignant to me given my Wife carries the gene for increased risk to Melanoma and Pancreatic, she's had two Melanoma's, lost her Mum and multiple family members to Pancreatic and lots of others including a 16 year old Uncle to Melanoma.

I wish Garry all the best as much as I can at this horrible time.

[countygump]

My best wishes to the man as well, 56 is no age.

[BigFatPie]

Deepest sympathy to him.

I lost someone close to me to pancreatic cancer 30 years ago and treatment doesn’t seemed to have progressed at all.

[cher1]

Sympathies to him and his family for their loss. Pancreatic cancer took my dad at a young age; it's a particularly insidious disease, and mortality has barely improved since he died 30 years ago. So sad.

[upthemaggies]

Never as bad for us as some made out, I couldn't fault his effort and passion and I thought he wrote fondly and fairly about us in his NEP columns for the most part. Far more pro-Fword for obvious reasons but I wish our ex-pie well.

[sidders]

Deepest sympathy to him.

I lost someone close to me to pancreatic cancer 30 years ago and treatment doesn’t seemed to have progressed at all.

Wilko Johnson beat it.

[cher1]

Wilko Johnson beat it.

Wilko Johnson is an outlier in terms of survival though.

10 year survival rates haven't changed at all in the last 40 years.

[BigFatPie]

Wilko Johnson beat it.

I’m personally not a big fan of talk of anyone ‘beating’ cancer as it implies those who’ve died from it have ‘lost’ to it. Or they didn’t fight hard enough.

The reality is many factors decide someone’s ultimate diagnosis, as in Wilko Johnson’s case it was found(according to wiki) he had the ‘ a pancreatic neuroendocrine tumour (PanNET), a less virulent and more treatable form of the disease.’ I don’t know there was more than one type, but either way, he did well to come out the other side.

[51Magpie]

I’m personally not a big fan of talk of anyone ‘beating’ cancer as it implies those who’ve died from it have ‘lost’ to it. Or they didn’t fight hard enough.

Very glad to hear someone articulating the same thought that occurs to me every time I hear that phrase. So far I've "beaten" bowel cancer, but I don't know how many rounds there are...

[cher1]

I’m personally not a big fan of talk of anyone ‘beating’ cancer as it implies those who’ve died from it have ‘lost’ to it. Or they didn’t fight hard enough.

The reality is many factors decide someone’s ultimate diagnosis, as in Wilko Johnson’s case it was found(according to wiki) he had the ‘ a pancreatic neuroendocrine tumour (PanNET), a less virulent and more treatable form of the disease.’ I don’t know there was more than one type, but either way, he did well to come out the other side.

I agree entirely about the use of beating, fighting or battling in relation to cancer.

Wilko Johnson was also lucky enough to have his surgery at one of the foremost pancreas/liver centres in the world.