News
21st March 2011...We're Back!
Well, Its been months since the last update (the web design has taken longer than expected), but I'm pleased to finally say that we're open for business...lots of new products to come!
October 2010....Sorry we are still closed...
Well, it's been a long 11 months since The Handmade Album Company ceased trading due to the upsetting, life changing news that my partner was suffering from Stage 4, extranodal, Hodgkins Lymphoma (a.k.a cancer of the lymphatic system).
As Chris's health worsened due to the side effects of aggressive Beacopp 14 chemotherapy (they often say that the cure is worse than disease), I devoted my time to being full time carer to Chris...it's been a long and challenging journey, with our lives temporarily on hold and our time revolving solely around hospital appointments, chemotherapy sessions (several times per week) and a few emergency trips to A&E when Chris developed potentially life threatening neutropenic sepsis. This is a critical condition caused by the effects of chemotherapy on a group of white blood cells, known as neutrophils. These are the body’s infection fighters, however, the chemotherapy drugs cause their numbers to plummet to such a low level, that bacteria in the blood is unable to be destroyed….in short, a little infection that would not normally cause any harm to a healthy person could, if untreated, kill someone on such intensive chemotherapy…scary stuff.
Anyway, to cut a long story short, Chris completed chemotherapy at the end of April 2010 and had his first post chemo CT scan in July…ALL CLEAR, phew. It’s going to be a long road to recovery, the chemo has taken its toll on his body, muscle tone and general fitness, but I’m certain, with time, he’ll get there.
If there’s one message in our story, it’s that we’re all here only once and as Norman Barrett MBE once said “Life is not a rehearsal….this is it”…In other words, we must all make the most of our time here….
If you would like to help beat blood cancers, a once off donation can be made to Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research.
