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‘I went to the GP quite a few times with different issues, but they never quite put two and two together. In the end I went to the opticians because I had a big blind spot in my left eye, and they then sent me to hospital for a scan, which then showed there was a brain tumour. ‘Within a couple of days I was whisked down to surgery, and then I started radiotherapy a month later. Physically it was completely draining. But emotionally, I’m not someone to let something like this pull me down – I just accept things as they are.’ Although he coped well with his diagnosis and treatment, Vivek says he eventually recognised that even he needed extra support. ‘It was only once I started getting help from Macmillan that I realised, actually, I’m not as independent or as well balanced in my own head as I thought I was. ‘There was a Macmillan nurse who really helped me realise that, actually, there were a lot of things in my head that needed to be sorted out. Being able to speak to someone in person was important. ‘More than anything, it was just the fact that the presence of Macmillan in all the hospitals I’d been to was so great. You couldn’t turn a corner without some kind of help being available to you, whether it be leaflets or nurses. That’s why, for me, it wasn’t such an ordeal to go through the treatment and everything – but I realise for other people it definitely could be.’ ‘When I researched how much Macmillan does, I thought, I want to be a part of this – no matter how great or how small.’ Vivek began helping out at his local Macmillan centre. ‘I realised that, even though I’m in this position myself, I’ve still got something to offer other people who may be worse off. Or who are struggling a little bit more with certain aspects that I’ve managed to get control of.’ Looking back, Vivek says the experience was invaluable. ‘I enjoyed volunteering a lot. As much as I was helping other people, I realised I was actually helping myself as well.’ Vivek had been having unexplained symptoms for several years, but it wasn’t until he developed a blind spot in his eye that doctors were finally able to diagnose him: Vivek had been having unexplained tO B a pA T oF T iS I wA T

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