Getting on with cancer

People who can’t read or who don’t like written words are often very good at reading pictures. The Books Beyond Words series has been developed by Professor the Baroness Hollins and her team for use with people who find pictures easier to understand than words, including people with learning disabilities.

This book is based on a story by Veronica Donaghey, a woman with Down’s syndrome who had lymphoma. Veronica wrote:
“I’d like the book to be for doctors to read it. A Down’s syndrome girl has had cancer twice and pulled through it. It’s not all bad news. I don’t mean doctors are stupid but they are sometimes. I’m not a burden. I help other people. I put something back. It’s for everybody really. I’d like the book to have a happy ending. I’d like there to be photos of the people that helped me. I’d like Beth to draw the pictures.”

Sadly Veronica has since died of her illness.
This book is designed to support people like Veronica, who become unwell and are diagnosed as having cancer. In this story, Veronica visits her GP, who refers her to a hospital consultant. She has a chest X-ray and then is admitted to hospital for an operation. After the operation, the consultant tells Veronica that she has cancer, but that “it’s not all bad news”, some cancers can be cured. She goes on to receive radiotherapy and then chemotherapy sessions.

After the chemotherapy has finished, Veronica feels better. She is glad the treatment is finished. She hopes the cancer is cured. The story is divided into different sections highlighting the different experiences that cancer patients may have.