A CARMARTHENSHIRE man who was left bedridden by cancer has spoken about how he has been supported during his illness by his pet cat.

David Cryer, 65, was diagnosed with myeloma in November 2021, an incurable blood cancer that kills 3,000 people each year in the UK.

At the time he was diagnosed, David’s condition meant he was in so much pain that he took an hour and a half to shuffle from his bed to the bathroom.

During his ordeal, his 11-year-old rescue cat Beau was his constant companion and would gently pat him awake or nudge his nose if his breathing slowed in the middle of the night.

“She was a furry nurse for a lack of a better word,” he said.

David nominated Beau for the Cats Protection’s National Cat Awards and she made it to the final of the Moggy Marvel category, but lost out on the top prize.

“She was never out of arm’s reach from me, never ever. That’s why we nominated her. And the rest, as they say, is history," he said.

“In the early days I would struggle with breathing and having pneumonia at one point didn’t help. She moved from lying against my leg to lying nearly on my shoulder.

“When my breathing slowed or I missed a breath in my sleep, she would either put her nose against my nose and, with her whiskers or just her breathing, woke me up.

"She would sit there and tap my cheek with her paw. It really makes you wonder what they know. She just knew that I was unwell.

“Because chemo affects you in different ways, I’d lost my balance, so whenever I managed to get out of bed and go for a shower, she would come and sit on the floor looking at the shower or she’d sit on the window ledge. She never left my side.”

A simple blood test can pick up signs of myeloma but around 34 per cent of those diagnosed with the cancer visit their GP at least three times before a diagnosis.

David didn’t think much of his symptoms, which began with a stabbing pain in his shoulder blade. He was convinced by a friend to book an appointment.

Initially, he was told he had pleurisy and that it would ‘run its course’ but his symptoms worsened, and the pain moved from his shoulder to his kidney.

He saw another GP at the same practice who knew there was something seriously wrong.

Two days later, he was called by his surgery telling him to pack a bag and head to the hospital as soon as possible.

“’Incurable’ and ‘cancer’ are two words you really don’t want to hear," he said.

"I’m not the type of person to worry or panic but my first question was, how long have I got?

"The doctor said: ‘Five years but there’s no reason why it can’t be 10 years, or it could be even longer than that.’

“A lot of people when faced with something like that would think, this is the end. But I can’t afford to think like that. It doesn’t have to be.

"I just hold out hope that I’m going to be one of these people who live with it for 16 years or more.

“I might not be able to beat it, but I’m going to give it a damn good go.”

David has had treatment, including a stem cell transplant and is now doing well. However, the treatment has taken its toll and he’s suffered nerve damage in his hands and feet.

For more information about myeloma or to get in touch with Myeloma UK go to www.myeloma.org.uk. Myeloma UK runs an Infoline on 0800 980 3332.