Fulvio, a father of two teenage girls, was 49 when he was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer.

Determined to carry on working, Fulvio resisted any kind of palliative care. Following a negative experience at hospital, his wife Dawn says, “He just refused to go anywhere. He didn’t want to leave home.

“Even when we were told there was a bed at Fair Havens and the taxi turned up, he didn’t want to go. He was so frightened, it made him vomit.

“But within days of being at the hospice, they knew what medication he needed to be on and sorted his care plan. He was a different person. I could see glimpses of the Fulvio I knew – jovial, joking with the Care Team. I hadn’t seen that for so long because of the pain.”

The hospice even arranged for Fulvio to have lunch at the nearby pub, Saxon King, with Dawn and their two daughters. “It was great for him to spend quality time with us all, creating special memories.”

Fulvio was discharged from Fair Havens, but his pain became so bad again a few days later they called for an ambulance and he was taken to hospital. He died on 23rd July 2020, just days before he was due to start a new chemotherapy treatment.

“Fulvio only spent a week at Fair Havens, but that was what he needed. They restored his trust and faith in asking for help. For us, Fair Havens wasn’t about dying, it was getting Fulvio’s pain under control so we could have that small window of quality time together.”

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Published in 2021