Amy’s story in memory of her husband Brad

Brad’s Story: A Legacy of Love, Strength, and Awareness written by Brad’s wife Amy

As I began writing Brad’s story, I quickly realised that it would be nearly impossible to capture all the depth of our journey over the past 3.5 years in a single post. It’s a long and complex story—one filled with unimaginable challenges, profound strength, and a love that never wavered. I’ve done my best to summarise it here.

In 2021, Brad was a healthy 34-year-old father of two—our 19-month-old and our newborn, just two weeks old. He had no medical or family history of bowel cancer. But that year, everything changed. Brad had been experiencing symptoms for a few months—weight loss, fatigue, changes in bowel habits, and blood in his stools. He minimized them, wanting our focus to remain on the birth of our second child. That was Brad—always putting his family first. He finally saw his GP the same week our baby was born and was referred to a gastroenterologist, with an appointment scheduled for two weeks later. But he never made it. Just a week before the appointment, Brad’s bowel perforated.

He was rushed into emergency surgery, where he received a colostomy. Two weeks later, a colonoscopy revealed a tumour. Further tests confirmed our worst fears: Brad had Stage 4 adenocarcinoma, with metastases to his liver, lungs, and bladder.

Brad began intensive treatment right away—neoadjuvant chemotherapy and radiation with interdigitating Folfox plus Capecitabine. Four months later, he underwent a major surgery: an ultra-low anterior resection, partial cystectomy, colostomy reversal, and ileostomy formation. Then, three months later, he had a liver resection, removing 60% of his liver.

Despite countless rounds of Folfox chemotherapy, surgeries, and hospital stays, Brad remained strong—for me and for our children. His courage, his grit, and his relentless positivity carried us through. I’ve never seen strength like his.

As the disease progressed, Brad’s treatment shifted to Folfiri due to increasing lung metastases. Even then, he returned to work in the mines, adjusting his role to accommodate his health. His determination to provide and stay present for his family was unwavering.

By 2024, after more than a year of fortnightly Folfiri, his lung mets continued to spread. He developed a chronic cough and became short of breath. With all standard treatments exhausted, we were given a glimmer of hope: Brad was accepted into a Phase 1 CAR-T clinical trial in Sydney, two hours from home. We were hopeful. Brad underwent pre-trial testing, stem cell collection, and chemotherapy to suppress his immune system so his re-engineered cells could fight the cancer. At first, things looked promising. But within a week of the infusion, Brad’s health took a turn. His body didn’t respond the way we had hoped. The trial failed. The cancer had spread to his brain.

Brad passed away shortly after, at the age of 38—three and a half years after his diagnosis.
Brad was an extraordinary man. Through every setback, every treatment, and every painful step of this journey, he continued to show up for his family. He was devoted to raising awareness of early-onset bowel cancer, because we never imagined this would be part of our story.

Even in his final year, Brad continued working, loving, laughing, and living with our children. He didn’t let cancer define who he was. He was, and always will be, our rock.

This story isn’t just about grief—it’s about love, resilience, and the urgent need for awareness. Brad’s legacy lives on through his children, through me, through his family and friends and through every person his story may help.

Our one piece of advice:

Don’t put off that GP appointment if you are experiencing symptoms. Early detection could save your life.