My name is Patrick Lunt, I am 72 and on November 27, 2020 I was diagnosed with Lung Cancer.

I didn’t have what people might call “classic symptoms”, but I did notice that my appetite wasn’t normal and I wasn’t enjoying food like I used to. I also started to have stomach aches quite frequently, which was unusual.

During the summer of 2020, my wife, son and I would go on quite a few walks and my son pointed out that I seemed out of breath…we all put it down to being a bit unfit and thought more walking would be the answer but as my symptoms didn’t go away, my wife contacted the GP to express her concerns.

It took a while to figure out what was wrong but after several tests and visits to various departments in hospital – I was told there was a tumour on my left lung and following a further CT scan to confirm the diagnosis, I began chemotherapy on December 14, 2020.

My chemo cycle meant I had one session for two weeks running and then a week off, before my next cycle and this was repeated 4 times – which meant I was undergoing treatment over Christmas and into the latest lockdown.

I don’t recall noticing any impact on the hospital or my treatment, as a result of the lockdown”.

For me, the hardest part was telling my family when I couldn’t see them due to the lockdown, but I decided to write a letter to my closest family members. I worried about my mother who is 96 and lives a long way from me but we make sure we keep things light and positive…laughter is so important, I think.

At the point of diagnosis, my wife and I met with a Macmillan Cancer Support Nurse and she has been incredibly helpful, providing me with plenty of information and a phone number that I can call anytime I need to with questions.

I felt jolly well supported!”

If anybody has got symptoms – you owe it to yourself really, to just go and just get things checked out because if it is cancer that is affecting you, it is bound to be better to catch it early as there is less of it to get out!

I can’t fault any aspects of the NHS throughout my journey. I have been mighty impressed with the staff at the chemotherapy unit, they never appear flustered and you always feel so well looked after, despite the constant stream of people coming and going.

Cancer has not stopped me either; I still enjoy my work and I have felt so alive during my treatment – the medication that I am on has really helped minimise side effects from my treatment; I’ve never felt unwell.

I’ve also had my Covid-19 vaccine now and completed my fourth cycle of treatment recently, so have a few weeks off before I begin immunotherapy at the end of March.