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Daily Mirror
3 days ago
- Health
- Daily Mirror
'I thought I'd burnt toast but it was symptom of very serious condition'
Gareth Evans, 57, from Cardiff, was diagnosed with Parkinson's in 2018 after he started to show symptoms in his mid 40s - including depression and unusual smells When Gareth Evans, a staunch rugby fan and carpenter, reached his mid-40s, peculiar signs began to emerge, indicating something was amiss. Known for his activity levels and joyful nature both at work and at home, Gareth suddenly found himself grappling with inexplicable sadness and unprovoked tearfulness while on the job. Experiencing involuntary arm twitches and sensing the phantom scent of burnt toast further compounded his confusion. Despite the jigsaw of symptoms, it wasn't until medical professionals stepped in that the perplexing picture was completed with a diagnosis of Parkinson's – an illness with no known cure. Gareth grappled with depression, one of the initial indicators of his condition but remained without answers for some time. "Depression... it comes with Parkinson's," he recounted. The reality of the disease dawned on him as he tried to cope with overwhelming emotions. "I didn't understand it. I'd go into work and I'd feel very sad and I would cry." Concealing his struggle became second nature to Gareth, who worked at the Cardiff and Vale University Health Board. "I would come home and I'd cry in the shower, but I was very good at hiding it, didn't talk about it, and didn't get any help and that just got worse and worse." He was acutely aware that something was amiss but couldn't pinpoint the problem. "I just knew there was something wrong. I just didn't know what." It wasn't until unmistakable physical manifestations became evident that Gareth sought assistance. Now 57-years-old, he reflects: "I worked for 34 years for the health service. So I was actually at work and I looked down onto my left arm, and I could see the muscle just on the forearm... it was twitching, twitching a lot. "I couldn't control it, couldn't stop it and I had this for a while, you know, for a couple of days." "So actually, I went to see a friend of mine who worked in the hospital and I asked her advice and she told me I needed to get it sorted." Gareth ultimately sought help from his GP and was referred to a specialist at the University Hospital of Wales, ,reports Wales Online. After receiving his diagnosis on September 21, 2018, he admits he "cried like a baby". The revelation offered clarity for his past ailments, but the subsequent reality of living with the condition has drastically impacted his life. "First of all, the depression just wasn't me, because I've always enjoyed life to the full," Gareth shared. He explained that the emotional toll of depression hit him harder than the Parkinson's itself, saying, "The depression knocked me for a six, more so than the actual Parkinson's, to be honest." Now, years after the diagnosis date, he faces significant challenges: "But it affects me now, like 10 years on if you want to go from the diagnosis date. I can't walk properly. If I don't take my tablets, I get these terrible cramps." Recalling a harrowing episode, Gareth said, "I was walking the dog one day and I forgot to take my tablet and I was stuck in the field for 40 minutes. I just couldn't move." Compounded by bad weather, his situation worsened: "It was tipping down with rain and all my muscles had seized up." Painfully immobilised by cramps, Gareth described the recurring struggle: "I had a terrible cramp and it was very, very painful. This sort of thing happens quite a lot. It affects your internal organs as well. "It affects you bladder. So you're constantly back and forth to the toilet. You think you need a wee, but then you don't, and then you do, and that affects you there. But I must admit, I don't really let it get to me too much now. I'm in control of it." Nearly 8,300 people in Wales are currently living with Parkinson's. The progressive neurological condition caused by a lack of dopamine in the brain. The disease causes both motor symptoms such as tremor, stiffness, and slowness of movement, as well as less commonly recognised non-motor symptoms including sleep disturbances, memory issues, and constipation among others. It can also sometimes lead to phantosmia – where patients perceive smells, such as burnt toast, that aren't actually there. In recent years, Parkinson's has come to renewed public attention as a result of Michael J Fox's campaigning on the issue. The Back to the Future star has been open about his experience with the condition, and has won awards for his advocacy for a cure for the disease. For Gareth, once he had fully taken in the advice from experts and come to terms with the diagnosis, he felt he could move on and get back to work. But while Gareth's return was accommodated well by his employers, in light of his diagnosis he soon had to retire upon his doctor's advice. Recalling how he dealt with his retirement, he said: "The first few months, I just sat in the window, looking out at the rain, beating down onto the patio, and I'm thinking, 'Is this it? Is this what retirement is about?' "Like I said, I'm a very headstrong person, and I've been involved in team sports all my life, mostly rugby. So you know when you're down, and you know you can do something about it. "So, I decided to... enjoy as much as possible and get out and about if I can. Look after my grandchildren and my wife."It was a case of, 'it's not going to get better. So I've got to live with it and work with it'." It wasn't long before he found solace in his retirement, and found surprising new ways of coping. "I started painting, believe it or not," he said. "Another symptom I've got with Parkinson's is insomnia. I don't sleep very well. So I get up at night and I paint, painting by numbers. "I find that quite relaxing. Now that you might think is strange because I've got a tremor. I tremor most of the time. "So when I actually paint, because your brain tells you to concentrate and you literally go in and you paint, the painting by number is a very fine painting. You don't tremor because you use your brain." One of his favourite creations is a painting of his wife's grandfather, a World War two veteran. He explained: "I've got a painting on my wall in my kitchen and it's my wife's grandfather. He was just a couple of days short of 102 before he passed and I painted him and he's sitting in an armchair with his World War two medals across his chest." Gareth also now helps other people diagnosed with Parkinson's to come to terms with their diagnosis. He explained: "Funny enough, I actually do talk to people who are recently diagnosed and need help. "They'll come over to my house or they'll phone me. We tend to stick together, belong to a Facebook page for Parkinson's. "We all stick together and we help each other out... talking's the best thing." Newly diagnosed patients often went through similar emotions, he added. "The biggest thing is fear, knowing it's not going to get better, it's going to get worse, and there is no cure. The tablets I take actually work for me but, believe it or not, they've been out since the '60s annd '70s with all these tablets, they'd been around for years and years, and [doctors working in the field of] Parkinson's are trying to find a cure. "I'm hoping come September to actually go on a trial with my consultant. I've asked to put my name forward and become a guinea pig, so to speak. Because you've just got to try something, you've just got to give it a go." Gareth has thrown his weight behind fundraising, raising significant funds for Parkinson's charities through quizzes, marathons, and rugby matches. Earlier this month – on May 4 – Gareth raised £8,000 when he underwent a sponsored head shave and wax at the Maltsters Arms pub in Whitchurch, Cardiff. He said: "I'll always help, no matter what charity, and if I am able to do anything, I'll do it. "This last one, this one we've done, all I had to do was sit down and have my hair cut. It was the easiest £8,000 I've ever been involved in making! "I've done charity rugby games as well because, when I was first diagnosed, I wanted to raise some money for Parkinson's, so I organised a rugby game. All the people I've been involved with over the years, coaching, playing with, playing against, they all turned up for me. We raised £1,680 that day. That was just one day. "Another time in work, when I used to work, I used to have a 'fat club', we used to call it the 'Big Boy's Belly Fat Club' and the boys used to pay a pound a week and I would have my scales in work and I'd weigh them and I'd write their weight down on the board to encourage them for next week to come in lighter. "This went on for a couple of years and a lot of people got to know about it. Again, we raised money and it was all sent over to Parkinson's." This Friday, Gareth is organising an auction in aid of Parkinson's charity, where shirts donated by Wales rugby stars Rhys Patchell and Ben Thomas will go under the hammer. Meanwhile, Gareth wishes people were more aware of Parkinson's and how to approach people with the disease. He recalled: "(At) Christmas time, I went to watch Cardiff rugby play. I wasn't feeling well. I couldn't explain why I was feeling like it, but I wasn't very well and I decided to leave the rugby halftime. "My wife was picking me up in town because of my condition. I became so bad quickly and I didn't know what it was. I had a chest infection as well. "I approached a man in Queen Street and I asked him for help because I was walking with cramps and I was stiff. I wasn't drunk by any means but this guy thought I was drunk, and I asked him for his help. He gave me the F-word, told me to go away. "It made me cross, because that was the first time that had ever happened. So I just want people, you know, who haven't got Parkinson's, to just realise when you look at somebody and they're a little bit different to normal, just think to yourself it could be something medical. "It could be something causing that problem. Give them a chance, there's always a story behind everybody." In the meantime, Gareth says he's had amazing support from his family. He said: "My wife, she keeps me motivated. My family, my children, my grandchildren. I'm a very lucky man. I've got a fantastic family and I've got a fantastic circle of friends and colleagues. I've been fortunate enough to be recognised in work and I actually went to meet the royal family at a garden party a couple of years ago. " Gareth added: "I've got three granddaughters and they're brilliant, six, four, three, and 18 months - nearly two. And my wife looks after them on a Tuesday, they come here to our house every Tuesday and I sit there and I just watch them and it makes me happy because I live through them. "You look at your children and you... You see them doing well, and you just think to yourself, 'I've done something right in life, having a good family'. That's my unit, what I call my unit. My children."
South Wales Guardian
01-05-2025
- Health
- South Wales Guardian
Parasitic infection cases reported after trip to Welsh farm
The NHS trust revealed 28 cases of cryptosporidium infection were reported by people who attended a calf and lamb feeding and petting session at the Cowbridge Farm Shop at Marlborough Grange Farm (Vale of Glamorgan). Public Health Wales said the farm shop has voluntarily ended calf and lamb feeding and petting sessions and were 'cooperating with our investigations'. Su Mably, consultant in health protection at Public Health Wales, said: 'We are working closely with partners to investigate these cases and to understand if there is a wider risk to the public. 'We would advise anyone who has visited the farm, particularly those who attended feeding or petting sessions, and who is now experiencing symptoms to contact their GP.' The Cardiff and Vale University Health Board, Vale of Glamorgan Council and Shared Regulatory Services are also investigating the cases. The Cowbridge Farm Shop has been contacted for comment. Cryptosporidium is a parasite that can cause gastrointestinal illness. It is often linked to contact with animals, particularly young farm animals such as calves and lambs. A post shared by Public Health Wales (@publichealthwales) The main symptoms of cryptosporidium infection include: Symptoms typically begin between two to 10 days after contact with the parasite and can last up to two weeks. Young children and people with weakened immune systems can be particularly vulnerable to the effects of the infection. Public Health Wales said people should be aware of the 'potential health risks' of visiting petting farms, adding that 'pregnant women should take particular care and avoid contact with newborn lambs during lambing season'. RECOMMENDED READING: The common disease medical experts believe will cause the next global pandemic What is HMPV and should we be worried about it? Plus symptoms and how it spreads Does asbestos cause cancer? The exposure symptoms to look out for The health body said those visiting petting farms should follow good hygiene practices by: Further information about cryptosporidium and advice on infection prevention is available from the NHS 111 Wales website.
Yahoo
22-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
She was planning her funeral before her life was saved - others might not be so lucky
Calls are being made for a life-extending bowel cancer treatment to be funded by the NHS in Wales, like it is in Scotland, England and Northern Ireland. Some people have called the situation in Wales a "postcode lottery". Since May 2022, Moondance Cancer Initiative have been funding peritoneal metastasis treatment in Wales, the only other option for treatment in palliative care. The organisation are based in Cardiff and Vale University Health Board and their treatment is available to all eligible patients from Wales. However its future is not secured without NHS funding. Professor Jared Torkington, clinical director at Moondance Cancer Initiative, and consultant colorectal surgeon at Cardiff and Vale University Health Board said: "NHS Wales committing to fund this service permanently would not only save lives but also ensure that Welsh patients can access care close to home without unnecessary delays or financial barriers." READ MORE: Storm of cases of infectious virus ripping through Wales READ MORE: Traitors winner Leanne reveals fiancée's heartbreaking breast cancer battle inside their Welsh home This life-extending surgery combines cytoreductive surgery and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy and is given to patients whose bowel cancer has spread to the peritoneum, the lining of the abdomen. Since the organisation began offering the treatment in May 2022 they have treated 40 patients in Wales with 250 more referred for consideration. Stay informed on the latest health news by signing up to our newsletter here. Before Moondance started offering the treatment the only way to have it on the NHS was to move out of Wales. This was something Sue Quinn Aziz was forced to do when she moved to Birmingham for the treatment which her doctor warned she had "zero chance" of getting on the Welsh NHS. Sue is now cancer free. Victoria Reitze, 55, from Barry, was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer and offered palliative chemotherapy before she was later offered the life-extending treatment. When Victoria first received this news she was forced to make end of life plans. "I had to put my end-of-life plan in place. We had to decide where I was going to die. I was going to have a living wake because I thought nobody's going to have a party without me," Victoria said. She had eight rounds of chemotherapy before the surgery which involved removing several of her organs including over half her liver, some of her colon and a full hysterectomy. Victoria admitted the surgery was "gruelling" but said it meant she was now cancer-free. Diane Morgan, 74, from Llanharry, was the first in Wales to get the treatment when she had the surgery the day after her 72nd birthday. Diane said: "I can't praise them enough. It's given me a new lease of life. I'm so grateful I've had it done." Diane had four subsequent chemotherapy sessions and now feels "brilliant". She is now able to spend precious time with her three great-grandchildren. It currently costs three times more to refer patients for treatment outside of Wales than it does to perform it within NHS Wales and Moondance Cancer Initiative said sustainable funding would allow more equitable access and be an efficient use of NHS resources.
