Wiltshire Police officer raising money for leukaemia charity after diagnosis
He found out the news just weeks ago.
George Attwood, who is a serving Wiltshire Police officer in Amesbury, has set up a fundraiser for the Bournemouth Leukaemia Fund after being diagnosed with the blood cancer.
A few weeks ago, George started to feel unwell with a bit of a sore throat and contacted his GP online.
In the current climate, it was assumed to be Covid-19 and he was asked to go tested, while he was also prescribed penicillin and some antibiotics at the same time.
After a few days he was starting to feel worse, getting breathless and having blurry vision, so he was told to go get an eyesight test.
The opticians said that he had suffered a bleed at the back of the eye and made an urgent referral to the hospital.
George's GP also got in touch and asked him to come in for some blood tests and not long after doing them, he was told he needs to go to the hospital as he had leukaemia.
George told Greatest Hits Radio:
"Considering I work for the police we're constantly doing stuff and we're fit and healthy and always moving around so going from that to barely being able to walk up just a flight of stairs and just feeling utterly run down it was a complete life turning experience actually to be told that you've got cancer and you're thinking what no surely not me."
Living in Verwood, the 29 year-old has been in Royal Bournemouth Hospital for a few weeks while he receives care.
He said he is doing alright, and is hoping to go home for a bit soon:
"I'm doing really well, the first week was really hard as I was definitely in shock and not really understanding the full extent of what is happening. Doctors were telling me I'd be off work for 8 to 12 months and I'm thinking nah I'll be back to work next week, surely not months. The first two weeks of chemotherapy was hard as it obviously makes you very fatigued and just everyday activities are quite hard but once that finished and I started to rebuild some strength it's been a lot better and fortunately I haven't suffered any of the major side effects like sickness, other than just a bit of hair loss, but the treatment has gone really well."
Leukemia is a cancer of the body's blood-forming tissues, including the bone marrow and the lymphatic system. Bone marrow stops producing healthy cells and symptoms can start slow then suddenly overwhelming you as healthy cells die.
The causes of it are currently unknown, which is why George is trying to raise some money for the Bournemouth Leukaemia Fund at the hospital in the coastal town.
He hopes that he can get some vital funds for the charity so they can continue research into it, as well as spread awareness of the signs and symptoms.
So far, he has already raised over £2,000, with a target of £5,000 being set.
You can donate to his** Just Giving page here**.