Podcaster Deborah James has bid an emotional goodbye to her brother Ben, before he departs on a trip abroad with his fiancée. Deborah, known by many as 'Bowel Babe,' was diagnosed with bowel cancer back in 2016 and has been praised across the UK for raising the profile of the condition and raising thousands of pounds to fund clinical trials and research into personalised medicine for cancer patients.
Sadly, Deborah is now approaching the end of her life and is receiving round-the-clock care at her parents' home in London. Whilst she's pleased to be able to be surrounded by her family, she didn't want to hold her brother and his fiancée back from an amazing trip to America they've been planning for a long time.
With this in mind, Deborah has said goodbye to her brother, for what could be the final time. He and his fiancée are set to travel to America - and Deborah has told him not not worry about her or to come home, even if her condition deteriorates.
Read more: Deborah James' beautiful and important last message for us all
Speaking to The Sun, Deborah confirmed she had said goodbye to Ben and wanted him to enjoy his trip with his partner. "He’s off on holiday to the US. I have told him they have to go, they’ve planned the trip for ages," she said. "I also told him he must not come back, under any circumstances.
"He says he’ll come home. It’ll be horrible saying goodbye to him. I can't really think about it right now."
"My brother will be the most amazing dad. I am so pleased he is engaged, I love Ashley and they are so happy together," Deborah added. "It breaks my heart that I won't see their kids, or see the dad he will be."
Her comments come after she bravely shared an important message with the public and urged people to "check your poo" for signs of bowel cancer or other cancers. She previously said that knowing she is now nearing the end is "still shocking" and she is devastated about leaving her children behind.
"I have always said I don't want to leave a stone unturned, I don't think there is a stone we haven't tried to overturn in order to make my liver work again," she said. "In order to get my body functioning. But unfortunately, I am exhausted, I am absolutely exhausted and we have got to the point now where I know we can't do anything more."
"It is really hard. The thing that I know is I trust my husband, he is the most wonderful man, and so is my family," she added. "I know that my kids are going to be more than looked after and will be surrounded by love. You always want to know as a mother 'are your kids going to be OK?', and my kids are going to be fine, but it doesn't mean I am not going to miss every chance that I could have had with them."
What are the symptoms of bowel cancer?
The symptoms of bowel cancer can be subtle and do not necessarily make you feel ill. The NHS says that more than 90% of people with bowel cancer have one of the following combinations of symptoms:
- a persistent change in bowel habit – pooing more often, with looser, runnier poos and sometimes tummy/abdominal pain
- blood in the poo without other symptoms of piles (haemorrhoids) – this makes it unlikely the cause is haemorrhoids
- abdominal pain, discomfort or bloating always brought on by eating – sometimes resulting in a reduction in the amount of food eaten and weight loss
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