A Scots mum and gran have been given a devastating cancer diagnosis – just weeks after losing their husband and son-in-law to the same disease.
Samantha Reilly, 39, was diagnosed with breast cancer in November, only two months after her husband, James, 39, died from lung cancer. The father-of-two went to his doctor with concerns over a cough but tragically died just seven weeks after his diagnosis.
Samantha, who lives with daughters Toni, 13, and Kaitlyn, 15, faces six months of gruelling chemotherapy and surgery followed by a further six months of radiotherapy treatment. And in a further devastating turn of events, her mum, Ellen McCabe, has been diagnosed with terminal lung cancer – leaving the Barrhead family’s world turned upside down.
Gran Ellen, 69, told our sister title, Glasgow Live: “It’s been hard for us. The consultants don’t understand why James’ mass grew so fast, they were great with getting him tested and tried their best for him but it just wasn’t meant to be. I can accept it for myself but can’t accept what happened to James and now my daughter. We are all heartbroken.”
Opening up on Samantha’s diagnosis and paying tribute to James, Ellen added: “It’s frightening for us. My granddaughters are not handling it well, they are only young and this shouldn’t be happening. It happened so quickly to one family in the space of a few months. Samantha is not in a good place and has not had time to grieve her husband before having to deal with all this.
“James was always so happy and caring. He was a great worker, his colleagues all loved him and he got on with everybody. He has left a massive hole in our hearts and there’s a void that can never be filled.”
Royal Alexandra Hospital nurse Samantha has been forced to take sick leave due to her condition. With the family not having life insurance in place, Ellen has launched a GoFundMe page to help her daughter and grandchildren and “ease the financial pressure” on the family.
Ellen said: “It has had a huge impact. We don’t understand how or why this has happened. My granddaughters are devastated. I want to ease the pressure financially and make sure they are alright.”
You can find out more and support the fundraising appeal here.
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