A Dundee woman who has been given a terminal cancer diagnosis has raised thousands for charity at an end-of-life party.
Jodi Cunningham, 45, received the “devastating” news her ovarian cancer has spread to other parts of her body earlier this year.
Although the former Abertay University student says she has her “down moments”, she does not want to let the disease dictate the time she has left.
Along with husband George, she has been creating memories – including a bucket list trip to Amsterdam and planning to see Dundee DJ Hannah Laing perform.
She was joined by friends and family at the party in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support and Maggie’s Centre.
‘I didn’t want cancer to dictate the time I have left’
Jodi, a Tesco manager, has had endometriosis – when tissue similar to the lining grows outside of the uterus – for most of her life, leaving her in “crippling” pain at times.
But while on holiday in May, she began suffering a different type of pain.
She told The Courier: “I initially thought it was connected to my endometriosis.
“I wasn’t eating and I got a scan and they discovered a cyst on my ovary – which I knew about.
“They looked at the scan again and discovered cancer on my bowel.”
Doctors at Ninewells Hospital confirmed Jodi had clear-cell ovarian cancer that had also spread to her stomach, liver and appendix.
She said: “I was told chemo wasn’t going to work, aside from extending my life by a few more months.
“While it was a devastating diagnosis, I didn’t want this to dictate the time I have left.
“Before getting this news, I’d actually wanted to change profession to being a celebrant.
“That possible career change inspired me to throw a bash to celebrate my life – I thought, ‘F*** it’.
“I wanted to celebrate while I’m here and be surrounded by friends and family.
“The best way I can see of dealing with this is to live and laugh.
“Planning more bucket list stuff, including seeing DJ Hannah Laing, has kept me motivated.”
The couple have now raised more than £10,000 for the cancer charities, aided by George completing the Kiltwalk.
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