Thank you

Throughout my illness I have been given the most tremendous support.

Firstly I would like to thank all the nurses, doctors and support staff on ward P3. They have been brilliant to me. Every time I have felt down someone has come in and cheered me up just by spending time with me or listening to me talk drivel.

I could not have come this far without them and I don't think I will ever be able to express my full gratitude to the team.

I also want to say thank you to my anonymous donor who has so generously given me a chance to live.

When I was diagnosed with leukaemia back in November it was like a huge rock being thrown into a pool, the ripples of which swept out across so many friends, family members and colleagues.

Their response has also been incredible raising a large sum of money for charities associated with leukaemia.

My friend Phil Driver ran the London Marathon for the Anthony Nolan Trust, in a pretty impressive four hours. He has also organised a big football tournament in Liverpool at which their will be a drive for new stem cell donors.

I hope he knows how grateful I am for all the effort and time he has personally put in.

Phil has now raised over £5,000 for the Anthony Nolan Trust.

My girlfriend Poppy invited members of her family and other friends to throw themselves down a 6-mile white water rafting course in Scotland. This feat was made all the more impressive that one of the rafters was unable to swim.

They raised a further £4,200 for the Anthony Nolan Trust.

My mum, Kay Sudbury, works for a law firm in Nottingham called Browne Jacobson. The firm held a raffle and auction - where partners volunteered to work as slaves for the day - raising over £4,000 for Leukaemia Research.

Special mention has to go to Examiner photographer Andy Catchpool. He donated the £175 given to him for 25 years' company service to ward P3 where I am being treated. The ward is about to lauch a huge improvement programme and his money will be put towards directly enhancing the facilities available for patients undergoing leukaemia treatment.

Thank you to all my family and friends who have helped me during this difficult time.

I'd also like to thank all my colleagues at work - thanks for everything you have done and for being so brilliant during a pretty terrible time in my life.

I have been really touched by the amazing levels of generosity and kindness shown towards me. You have no idea how much it has helped.

Thanks for the weekend

And so begins a potentially difficult week.

In a few hours I will have a crucial bone marrow sample taken.

The results, which we are hoping to learn on Wednesday or Thursday, will show one of two things.

1. This relapse can be controlled by drugs.
2. I will have to choose whether to have further intensive treatment or not.

Not a particularly pleasant set of circumstances but on the plus side I did have an excellent weekend.

I’m hoping today that the doctors don’t ask me how many units of alcohol I’ve consumed because I will clearly have to lie.

On Saturday my friend Ben and I cruised down to London in my hot new wheels - or the Vauxhall Vectra as some people prefer to call it.

He went off to see his family and I went to hang out with an old journalist college friend called Laura in St Albans.

We went out for lunch, and a few drinks, and I confessed that I had no real plans. She was great though. She offered to put me up and said I could come out with her mates around town later.

I don’t know if you can do ‘shout-outs’ in blogs but if you can, here’s one to everyone I had the pleasure of meeting on Saturday. Thanks for such a fun time.

I met some lovely people and they really helped take my mind off everything.

Anyway, after many more drinks, games of cards (yes, it was that sort of random night) we ended up in some club which seemed to be in the middle of nowhere.

The music was excellent but by that time I was so out of it I was unable to bust those special dance moves I have treated all of you to before.

That was probably a good thing.

I think we left about 3am and I seem to remember being in a cab full of really cool girls all singing: "We love you taxi" to the tune of I Can’t Take My Eyes Off You.

Needless to say I was a little delicate the next day.

My grandma in Nottingham has been excellent throughout all this.

She has come up with lots of little ideas for treats that include things like theatre tickets and dinner at the House of Lords.

Big Grandma has quite an impressive social network!

One of her ideas was to treat me and friends to lunch at Gordon Ramsey’s restaurant, The Maze, near Mayfair, in London.

She arranged for some money to be left behind the bar and for us to treat ourselves to some really good food.

The plan was that me Ben and my friend Olie would all meet there at 12.30pm.

Ben was quite fresh but I was struggling.

However, Olie was in a terrible state.

Me and Ben arrived first and sat down with a glass of sparkling mineral water.

Then Olie rocked up, strides through this beautiful restaurant, clutching a Boots carrier bag.

Joining us he sits down at our posh table, opens his carrier bag and takes out a bottle of water fizzing with Alka Selza!

We must have looked a right sight.

The food was delicious though. I tried smoked eels, quail eggs, sea trout and a beautiful rhubarb crumble.

It was a lovely treat and we were looked after incredibly well by the staff - boy did we need it.

So thanks again Grandma.

Now the fun temporarily stops but whatever the outcome I hope I have the ability to handle the results with dignity and courage.