Lynda’s Story: A Mam, a fighter, and a diagnosis that came too late

Lynda was so much more than her diagnosis. She was a mam, a daughter, a sister, a nana, a friend, and the person who made a house feel like home. Her door was always open, and she loved nothing more than having her family around her.

Mam had already been through so much in her life. When she was just three years old, she suffered severe burns and endured numerous operations. She was a fighter from the very beginning, and that strength stayed with her throughout her life.

In 2010, Mam was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. By 2014, she had become dependent on insulin, although she later moved back to oral medication because of the difficulties caused by her skin grafts. Then, in 2015, she underwent a double heart bypass. Despite everything she had faced, Mam kept going. She was resilient, strong and always thinking of the people she loved.

So, when things began to change, we never imagined pancreatic cancer could be the reason.

From 2022 onwards, Mam began losing weight without explanation. Her diabetes became increasingly difficult to control, and she started experiencing severe stomach and back pain, persistent indigestion and heartburn, sickness and changes in her bowel habits.

Watching someone you love go through this is heartbreaking, especially when you don't understand what's happening. Mam tried different medications and attended appointment after appointment, but her symptoms were repeatedly attributed to her diabetes. We were left watching her become weaker and more unwell, desperately wanting answers.

Eating became difficult. The pain and sickness took away the simple pleasures she had always enjoyed, and many days she was left feeling too weak to do very much at all. We could see that something wasn't right, but we didn't know what we were dealing with.

Then, in March 2026, everything changed.

Mam became critically unwell and was admitted to hospital. She was jaundiced, in severe pain and fighting for her life. After intensive treatment and days of fear and uncertainty, we finally received an answer on 11 March.

It was Stage 4 pancreatic cancer. The cancer had already spread throughout her body.

After everything Mam had survived in her life, we were faced with the news that there was nothing they could do to stop it. Her care became focused on keeping her comfortable and surrounding her with the people she loved.

Just two hours after we received the diagnosis, Mam passed away peacefully, surrounded by her family.

There are no words to explain what it feels like to lose your mam like that. We had spent so long worrying about her symptoms and searching for answers, never knowing that we were facing something so devastating. Finally understanding what was wrong brought no relief, because by then it was too late.

We will never know whether an earlier diagnosis could have changed Mam's outcome. But we will always wonder what might have been different if we had known more about the signs of pancreatic cancer.

Why I'm sharing Mam's story

I don't want Mam to be remembered only for how she died. I want people to know the incredible woman she was, how much she loved her family, and how much she had already overcome.

But I also want her story to mean something.

Unexplained weight loss, worsening diabetes, persistent indigestion, stomach or back pain and other ongoing changes were all part of what Mam experienced. We didn't know that these could be signs of pancreatic cancer, and we never imagined that this was what was happening to her. Looking back, there were so many changes in Mam's health, but no one connected the dots in her symptom journey.

I'm sharing our experience because I don't want another family to go through the same fear, uncertainty and heartbreak. I want people to know the symptoms, to listen to their bodies and to seek medical advice when something doesn't feel right.

Please don't ignore symptoms that persist or feel unusual for you. Ask the questions. Keep speaking up if you're worried.

We can't change what happened to Mam, and we will always wish we had more time with her. But if sharing her story helps someone recognise the signs and get answers sooner, then perhaps something positive can come from the most devastating experience our family has ever faced.

Mam deserved more time. And her story deserves to be heard.