Nathan Codling Story
Written by Georgia Hadcroft
My boyfriend, (almost fiancé) Nathan passed away August 2019 at the age of 22. He was diagnosed back in December 2017 with testicular cancer after discovering a lump in his testicle, that progressively changed and divided in to 2 lumps and just got bigger and bigger. When Nathan first discovered the lump he went to the doctors to get it checked and they said it's fine it's just a cyst, keep an eye on it and got sent home.
Weeks later it was getting bigger and bigger, we went back multiple times. We believed what the doctors were telling us and we had no cause for concern and we carried on our daily lives, although the lump was forever growing. We did go back some more times only to get the same answer, until the lump in his testicle was the size of a tennis ball and it was very uncomfortable for him, only then they decided to give him a scan and low and behold after they removed it and did a biopsy, it was cancer, a rare type of cancer called a Sarcoma and it had spread to his abdomen area by time they found it.
He had to go down to London for Chemotherapy and Radiotherapy as they didn't treat that type of cancer where we lived. After a lot of heartache, pain, radiotherapy and radiotherapy in May 2019 after our once in a lifetime holiday in Australia where Nathan did a skydive, we were expecting him to get the all clear scan but instead the scan showed the complete opposite, the cancer had spread to his bones and was basically everywhere, there was nothing they could do and was incurable but they would give him palliative chemo to extend his life as much as possible. This news absolutely floored us.
Nathan and I had our own place with our German Shepherd/Husky called Flo and when we got home we just cried together, how could this happen to him at 22 years old? We started alternative therapies as we just couldn't just give up, we tried everything, he was in and out of hospital for various reasons and when he got admitted for the last time we believed he would still come home, Nathan had plans for when he came home, he had ordered things off Amazon and they were waiting for him on the table for when he got home.
Before Nathan got admitted for the last time I was his full time carer for months, the hardest thing I have ever had to do in my life, I didn't sleep for months. Nathan passed away in hospital on the 28th August 2019 with me and his brother Matty by his side.
When I had got home from the hospital after he had passed, I just had to look at his phone to see if he was googling anything and if he was scared because he did like to google things, the the website that opens up in front of me was a jewellers website with a beautiful engagement ring in full screen, I burst into tears, how could life be so unfair? Before his funeral, his Nan and Grandad secretly bought the ring for me and his brother sent me to the salon for some beauty treatments and I went over to his house after and he had set up his living room with candles in shapes of a heart with a massive bunch of flowers and told me this is how Nathan was going to do it, so he did it as a last favour for his brother. I wear the ring all the time to this day, it's the most precious thing
Nathan was the most purest soul, he made everybody laugh, he would dance his heart out if a song came on whilst food shopping, not caring if it embarrassed me. He loved his job as a Carpenter and it's all he would talk about and it brought a massive smile to his face when he was telling me about work. He would always put other peoples feelings before his own, and he would help ANYONE out if he could, he was very hands on and liked to be kept busy building or fixing things. The world is definitely a lot dimmer without him in it. He was a massive child but with an old mans personality, he messed around but he was a sucker for a night in with a cup of tea and biscuits and he had very old school morals, but that's what made him Nathan! Even literally 10 minutes before he passed away, he was sat up drinking a cup of tea and eating a custard cream, it was just amazing to see. He just needed that last cuppa!!
hope my story raises some awareness, and no matter your age, whether you're 15 or 85, cancer doesn't stop for anyone. If you notice ANYTHING different, please get it checked out straight away by a doctor, if they tell you it's a cyst the first time and it changes even a tiny bit, do not stop until you're offered a scan. If Nathan was offered a scan a lot sooner it would have saved his life. With Nathan's 2 year anniversary coming up at the end of this month, I'm raising awareness in his memory as much as possible, I want to help anyone going through it or if anyone is a victim of their partner passing away, my inbox is always open for a chat.
