Chepstow woman’s Race for Life is tribute to husband

11:50am Friday 23rd March 2012 in News

TWO years after her husband died of stomach cancer, his wife Jo Rees, with her family and friends are backing the Race for Life in memory of him.

less than a month before being diagnosed with stomach cancer Barry Rees was playing five-a-side football regularly – but within four months of diagnosis, he was dead.

Jo, 38, still struggles to comprehend the speed with which the disease took her husband from her and their two children Luke, six, and four-year- old Amelia.

she admits to days when she feels like “climbing into a dark cupboard and not coming out”. but she is also confronting the hurt and despair head-on, by corralling friends into taking part in Cancer Research UK’s Race for Life, to raise money for research.

Mrs Rees, of Chepstow, said her engineer husband, was physically fit with a healthy lifestyle, and they did not even consider cancer as a possibility.

“He had some symptoms with indigestion the previous autumn, but it had been a stressful year for us both and we suspected a stomach ulcer,” she said.

“It wasn’t until Christmas that he started to get really ill. He became very weak, to the extent that he couldn’t even hold a screwdriver to assemble the children’s Christmas toys.”

mr Rees was admitted to the Royal Gwent Hospital on Boxing Day 2010, and the diagnosis came two weeks later. Stomach cancer can be particularly difficult to detect, and thus to treat, as symptoms often only manifest themselves once the disease is well-established.

“The cancerous cells were in the stomach lining, so there was no obvious tumour or growth. Barry understood the consequences, because he had researched stomach cancer as a possibility when he first became unwell,” said Mrs Rees.

“I was totally unprepared though, and just couldn’t take it in.

“The implications for me and our children, who were two and four years old at the time, were im-mense.”

After two full cycles of chemotherapy, mr Rees began then stopped a third, as the cancer was not responding, and the couple felt it was robbing him of his quality of life.

Mrs Rees recalls a “nightmarish”

time, wanting to be there for her husband and the children.

“I’d often stay up all night with Barry, then drive home to be there for the children in the morning. I don’t know how I got through it,” she said.

“My friends and family were great though, often just popping round with food because I didn’t have much time or energy for cooking.

“The hospital also helped, providing a bed so I could get some rest while with Barry.”

Mrs Rees also had the heartbreaking task of breaking the news to her children, and was helped to prepare for it by a support worker from St David’s Foundation Hospice Care.

“I wanted to be open and honest with them and explain the situation in terms they would understand,”

she said.

mr Rees died on April 7, 2010, aged just 37.

More News stories

Dressed in red, staff in the Department of Cardiology at Nassau University Medical Center took part in the go Red for Women campaign on Feb. 3. go Red for Women was initiated by the American Heart Association in 2004 after statistics revealed that more than 500,000 women die from heart disease each year, claiming more lives than any other disease, including cancer.

To raise awareness and promote a heart healthy lifestyle, cardiology staff members gathered in the lobby at NUMC and offered free blood pressure screenings.

Staff members and a heart disease survivor also spoke about their experiences. Guest speaker Sylvia Martin said she was diagnose with congestive heart failure at NUMC after a car accident last October. “I was going to the doctor all along,” she said,” but nobody every detected it.”

Martin’s road to recovery was slow and she was at NUMC for nearly two months due to injuries sustained during the car accident, but eventually agreed to undergo surgery and a defibrillator was inserted on Jan. 27. The electronic device will constantly monitor her heart rhythm and will help her heart beat normally. “I can see by the spring I’ll be blossoming again,” Martin said.

Some staff members also attended a videoconference with the Long Island Jewish Medical Center, who offered a special presentation for go Red for Women.

During the conference, numerous specialists discussed the importance of making proactive heart-healthy choices, including Dr. Jennifer Mieres, senior vice president of North Shore LIJ’s Office of Community and Public Health. “Remember to make a promise to yourself beginning today,” she said. “Most importantly, listen to your body. if something is different, if you’re not feeling right, if you’re a little bit out of sorts, do not just write it off.”

Mieres told the audience to start with small steps like making a more colorful plate by adding vegetables, laughing for at least ten minutes each day, walking more and getting at least seven hours of sleep each night. “Making that commitment out loud will ensure sustainability on the road to heart health,” she said.

Administrative Director of Cardiac Services at NUMC Lorinda Bauer said that most women don’t pay attention to their bodies and emphasized that men and women do not present with the same symptoms. She said the most common heart attack symptoms in women are indigestion, exhaustion, anxiety, back pain and jaw pain. She added that women should know their baseline cholesterol and blood pressure and have a routine electrocardiogram, EKG, performed each year.

Clean hands can help prevent the spread of infectious diseases, such as flu. This podcast explains the proper way to wash your hands. Comments on this video are allowed in accordance with our comment policy: cdc.gov This video can also be viewed at www2a.cdc.gov

The flu can be prevented through flu shots, a healthy immune system and avoiding exposure to the influenza virus. Prevent the flu through a healthy lifestyle withtips from a family practice physician in this free video on the flu and colds. Expert: Ken Savage Contact: wearehdtv.com Bio: Ken Savage is a graduate of Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences. Filmmaker: Christopher RokoszVideo Rating: 4 / 5

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you can lead, follow, or get out of the way. one woman from Gainesville chose to “lead” and that saved her life. most people don’t realize they have colon cancer until they experience symptoms and that can be very dangerous. TV20′s Corrie Lovette reports what one woman did to get her husband tested and why she’s happy she did it. Anna Collins says she heard on TV20 that North Florida Regional Medical Center was giving free colonoscopies last March. After trying unsuccessfully to convince her husband to go, she decided to lead by example. And that decision saved her life. she said, “I did it for him, but it turned out to be for me.” 62 year old Anna Collins of Gainesville was diagnosed with colon cancer after having a colonoscopy at North Florida last March. “I was very surprised because I had absolutely no symptoms. And I have a very healthy lifestyle, a very healthy diet. I eat very little meat, lots of fruits and veggies.” on the screen are the results of Anna’s colonoscopy. Here you see the normal tissues and here you see the colon cancer that Anna’s doctors found. Dr. Charles Sninsky said, “Here is a patient who is asymptomatic, absolutely no symptoms and she had a pretty far advanced colon cancer that was respectable, able to be treated and she’s doing exceedingly well.” Dr. Sninsky says everyone over 50 years old should be screened. And if you have any family history of the disease, then you need to have a colonoscopy 10 years before the relative was diagnosed. Sninsky says it’s a safe, painless outpatient procedure done while under anesthesia. He said, “It’s a flexible lighted tube the size of my finger and it has a ccd camera on the tip of it.” Doctors are looking for polyps with the camera. These can be either benign or precancerous and the doctor can often remove them while patients are already asleep for the colonoscopy. Sninsky said, “One could break the cycle, remove the benign lesions before they develop into a cancer.” the risk factors for colon cancer are family history and other inherited gastrointestinal disorders. However, as Collins knows, it can happen to anyone. That’s why Collins, who is now cancer free, wants to spread the word about detection. she said, “Even though you do have a healthy diet and lifestyle, you still need to have the colon screening because it could really save your life.” North Florida Regional Medical Center will be giving a free colon screening every day this month. All 31 appointments are filled.

Article Summary:

Providing you with up-to-date health tips, wellness tips, fitness tips and related information.People are often conscious of their body image especially in this era when wellness and a healthy lifestyle is a concern. Fitness centers, spas, dance clubs and diets are popular since men and women alike search for various ways to be physically fit.Having a lean body is an indication

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People are often conscious of their body image especially in this era when wellness and a healthy lifestyle is a concern. Fitness centers, spas, dance clubs and diets are popular since men and women alike search for various ways to be physically fit.Having a lean body is an indication of a discipline and good eating habits. unfortunately, many young women go into extreme by being so conscious of their body. The media projects the body of models as the benchmark for all people which is unreasonable since people have inherited body types.what Is Anorexia NervosaAnorexia nervosa is classified as an eating disorder that results to unhealthy compulsions such as excessive exercising and dieting. The wrong attitude towards controlling weight can lead to an eating disorder known as anorexia nervosa symptoms. Episodes of self-starvation are undergone by a person with anorexia nervosa. This disorder usually affects young girls and women ages 13-30 years old.Teenagers are usually preoccupied with how they look since peer pressure matters at this age. When too much attention is drawn to losing weight , the person with anorexia avoids eating foods that are considered “fatty”. The person just eats popcorn, lettuce, soup and other food types that do not provide correct nourishment for the body.Anorexia Nervosa Signs and SymptomsAnorexia nervosa symptoms can be easily detected since the symptoms are observable habits rigorously practiced by those afflicted with this disorder.First thing that would be observed is that the person thinks that he/she is too fat despite a thin appearance. because of a twisted perception if one’s body image, the person may even embark on an exercise program that can lead to more weight loss.The person with anorexia entertains people by cooking for them but dislikes eating and often complains of being full after taking a small amount of food. Due to the excessive fat loss, an anorexic often feels “cold” thereby making him/her wear layered clothing most of the time. fat is necessary to the body as an insulation against cold.Physical symptoms of anorexia are also obvious since the person is unusually thin, has dry skin ( caused by dehydration), brittle hair and discolored nails. These symptoms also indicate malnutrition since the body is being deprived of nutrients.Impact of Anorexia NervosaProfessor Janet treasure explains the complex disorder of anorexia nervosa, how to spot the symptoms and describes the impact it has on a person’s life.Anorexia nervosa also causes a person to feel irritable and cranky, sleepless, lethargic and dizzy due to hunger. Anorexic women often miss out their monthly period and have low-blood pressure. Eventually, symptoms of anorexia become very apparent as the person seeks medical attention due to depression.25 things about Anorexia and Bulimia you should know about.

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Aug 25 2010

1. ekorre33 Says: August 25th, 2010 at 8:41 am

   A new treatment for autism and adhd is hyberbaric oxygen chambers. although they have yet to prove any positive clinical results. I’m very sceptical, at the same time, I never take away hope from the parents of autistic children by speaking negatively about it. the jury is still out on it!

2. ekorre33 Says: August 25th, 2010 at 8:59 am

   Neither autism or adhd are gastroentistinal problems. Signs of autism can be seen in infantas only months old, the cause is not diet related. I work with autistic children and their parents. A lot of parents are given false hope by people like you, that if they only give them the right diet, the autism with disappear, it will not! If you are born with autism you will have it for life, just as if you are born with blue eyes. Symptoms and problems can be reduced with training & healthy lifestyle.