A BRADFORD man has spoken of the heartbreaking moment his partner told him she had developed a rare cancer - saying 'we both just burst into tears.'

Alex Moran was in the process of planning a big surprise party when then-girlfriend Trisha Ellerton was diagnosed with aggressive stage 2 bladder cancer.

It meant his plans were immediately put on hold as the welfare of Trisha, 25, was his top priority.

"How do you deal with something like this?" 39-year-old Alex told the Telegraph & Argus.

The pair met through a mutual friend back in December 2019.

It was not until three years later though when they started to spend more time together.

Alex said: "She was struggling with anxiety and depression, something I had dealt with in my past.

"I tried to help her as much as I could. We ended up more or less living with each other from June last year.

"As we spent more time together, we started to realise there was so much more there, we fell in love."

It led to the Heaton man ordering a ring this August with an engagement party set to take place at a pub the following month.

A trip to Airedale Hospital soon changed everything.

"She went in on the Thursday and they initially found she had kidney stones," Alex added.

"On the Friday morning (August 18) she gave me a call saying the ultrasound had found a mass in her bladder and we both just burst into tears.

"All the specialists have said they have never seen this in someone so young.

"It was totally unexpected and has turned our lives upside down." 

Determined not to let this get in the way of the couple's happiness, Alex's mother arranged a cinema trip for them a week after Trisha, of Canterbury, was out of hospital.

"I took her for a meal then we watched Blue Beetle - something light-hearted to change the mood.

"Then when we got home, I did not think I would get a better opportunity.

"I asked her, she burst into tears and said yes. We both ended up crying and cuddling."

 

Earlier this month, Trisha had an appointment with a surgeon to discuss the possibility of removing her bladder.

However, due to the cancer already being in her lymph nodes, the surgeon believed such major surgery would agitate the cancer, increasing the risk of it spreading to other organs.

Several days later, she was told the best option would be for her to start chemotherapy.

The hope is this will shrink the tumours in her lymph nodes to make surgery a viable option.  

The program started on September 20 and takes about eight weeks before another scan will determine if surgery can go ahead.

"The chemo has hit her very hard. It is tough," Alex said.

"I am really proud of her. She managed to eat two meals yesterday which is more than the nurses expected.

"She is sleeping a lot and feeling generally unwell. Emotionally it is difficult for her too."

Alex hopes they can marry in January 2024 but of course, that is dependent on how well Trisha's treatment goes.

Preparing for the worst, he asked his fiancee to write out a bucket list.

He said: "I was expecting a much longer list. I almost cried when she gave it to me with only five wishes.

"That is the type of person she is, she never expects anything of anyone.

"She did not get the chance to do things that most people tend to do when she was younger.

"She has never been on holiday in her life, that's the most important one for her."

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help Trisha achieve her five wishes which include a trip to a zoo, a chat with Joan Jett, and a visit to Disneyland for their honeymoon.

The fundraiser has already hit over £1,000 of its £7,000 target.

If you would like to donate, go to https://www.gofundme.com/f/fundraiser-to-help-trisha-bat-cancer-patient