Mom dies of “terminal” cancer, so rare nurses had never heard of

A “kind, funny and brilliant” mother tragically died of an “incurable” cancer so rare some of the nurses who treated her had never heard of it.

Lesley Turner was 40 when she died on July 22 last year, having been diagnosed with angiosarcoma after doctors found a lump in her breast last November.

The brave mother-of-one, originally from Stranraer in Dumfries and Galloway, asked medics at Northern General and Weston Park hospitals in Sheffield not to reveal how much longer she was gone.

Her heartbroken husband Rob, 41, said: “We knew pretty quickly it was serious. However, Lesley just smiled and said, “I’m still here.”

He continued, “She had chemotherapy for about four months, but she always had a smile on her face and said, ‘If you don’t laugh, you’re going to cry’ — so we just tried to move on.”

Lesley spent the last five days of her life at St Luke’s Hospice and Rob promised her he would grant her dying wish to raise money to thank them “for the most amazing care” she had received.

He said: “They took really good care of them – not just Lesley but all the visitors including me. They gave me a bed and fed and watered me – they really took good care of everyone.”

The couple, who had an eight-year-old son together named Liam, met in Glasgow in 2007.

Rob outfitted a shop in Iceland where Lesley was the manager and they began to hit it off.

Before returning to Sheffield when work was done, he left her an Easter egg with a sweet note that read ‘hope to see you soon’.

He recalled: “We started texting each other and for a good year we visited up and down. After a year we said we’ll do it.

“I said I would move to Glasgow but Lesley said I couldn’t last five minutes so she moved here to Sheffield.”

They soon bought their first home together and were married on June 14, 2014 at Grade II listed Stannington Church.

Of his late wife, Rob said: “She was nice. She just found the funny side of things — she was just plain funny and brilliant to be around.

“She was a real person, not a fake. And she always let you know how she felt.”

Speaking of the impact of the loss on Liam, he said: “It’s been tough for him but he has a lot of friends at school who help him and a loving family around him.

“But with Mother’s Day approaching and card making at school, he’s feeling it a little bit more. He gets through with my help and with the help of his grandparents.”

Rob has raised over £4,500 with a GoFundMe campaign, beating his original goal of £3,500.

He also organized a golf tournament at Hillsborough Golf Club on May 12th.

With all 100 tickets already sold for £50 each, Rob is hoping to raise a total of £10,000 for St Luke’s.

To donate, click here.

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