A COVENTRY man Ian Hopkins, 56, is fighting a terminal illness, determined to watch his older brother’s stage musical in September.
Ian was diagnosed with cancer of the oesophagus last year and underwent a grueling 12-hour surgery in September, only to receive devastating news in November that the cancer had spread to his lymph nodes.
Ian, one of the first people ever diagnosed with Aase Syndrome – a rare genetic disorder characterised by anemia and skeletal deformities – cannot pursue chemotherapy.
Instead, he receives blood transfusions every five weeks at University Hospital Coventry to maintain his quality of life.
He said: “I can’t change the diagnosis, but I can live whatever life I have left to the full.
“I will enjoy every day until my last. It would be shameful if I was to give up because I’m a very positive type of person.”
One of Ian’s primary goals is to live long enough to see his brother Graham’s latest musical, which portrays the life of folk heroine Nell Gwynne.
Nell, a celebrated actress and comedian, was the mistress of King Charles II during the Restoration era.
Coventry singer Emily Jane Brooks, known for her participation in Britain’s Got Talent with The D-Day Darlings, will reprise her role as Nell, with Rob Peach handling the male parts.
Ian added: “I didn’t see the play two years ago because I was too poorly with my anemia.
“That’s why I’m even more determined to see it this time.”
Ian said he wants to inspire at least one person who is fighting cancer to be positive and not be pessimistic.
He added: “At two months old, specialists told my mum that if I survived for six months, I would be lucky.
“I’m 56 now, so I must be a very lucky person.
“Yes, the cancer will kill me in the end, but I am determined to fight it off for as long as possible, hence why I am so determined to survive until Graham’s musical.
“I will turn up in a wheelchair or a hospital bed with tubes if needs be.”
