As part of the Lower Sixth’s PSD lecture series Epsom College welcomed Nigel Revell to talk about the taboo topic of teenage cancer. Here, Emily Vandrau (R) reflects on the talk:
“For many of us, the idea of listening to a presentation on an illness that effects people so tragically, was not the way we necessarily envisioned starting our Monday morning – however, the relaxed and candid manor in which Nigel spoke to us meant that we all listened intently to what he had to say.
“Nigel told us the true story of a boy our age named Ben, who was tragically diagnosed with a form of bone cancer at only 15 years of age. Nigel was his rugby coach and supported Ben through his year of chemotherapy; he told Ben’s story whilst also weaving in the development of the Teenage Cancer Trust and its growth since the time of Ben’s treatment 20 years ago.
“Unfortunately, Ben’s cancer returned and just before his 18th birthday, he passed away. Although many of us were incredibly emotional, Nigel told us that the last thing Ben would have wanted was for us to feel sorry for him. Instead, we should take what we learned and spread the message about how prevalent teenage cancer is and all the resources the Teenage Cancer Trust provides, should we or someone we know need it.
“This was a truly brilliant talk and shed a huge amount of light onto a topic that many of us would previously have been uncomfortable talking about. Thank you to Nigel for coming and to Mrs Keevil for organising the talk.”
