My name is Clive Newitt and I am a 46 yr old father of 4. I was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in July 2015 and began what I hoped was a ‘routine’ course of chemotherapy, after being told it was a very treatable form of cancer. Sadly, I proved to be an exception and failed both 1st & 2nd line treatments. I then began tretament with immunotherapy in May ’16 and having got into what looked like a stable remission by the August I had an Autologous Stem Cell transplant in early Sept ’16. This blog is a catalogue of what I’ve been through. I have been able to find loads of information online about Hodgkin’s Disease, as well as being able to read other people’s blogs, and about their experiences and how they have coped – and that helped me a lot. So I decided to write my own blog: as a way of helping as many fellow sufferers of Hodgkin’s Lymphoma (and similar blood cancers) as possible; as a way of keeping my friends and family up to date; and as a diary of how this story that is my life these days pans out, so that myself and my family can (hopefully) look back at in years to come.
A bit about me
I was born in Zimbabwe but these days live in Menston, West Yorkshire with my family of 4 kids, partner Emily and our crazy black cat Mojo. I am a Freelance Web Developer by trade, although I am not actually working at the moment (will be back into it as soon as!).
Previously I have pursued a wide range of careers – DJing from the age of 16, which developed into becoming a sound & lighting engineer; a van/truck driver (when I first moved over); working at LEGO in sales and tech support; starting a business importing and distributing unique high strength spirits from around the world; working in marketing at a local mental health charity that helps people get back on their feet; to working in a local creative agency on Front End web stuff. I most recently went back to Freelance web development and specialise in all things WordPress. Whilst I am ill I am also teaching myself a bit about the MEAN stack to keep my mind occupied.
Me and my girls (sadly my son Ben wasn’t around!)