'He's an amazing person' - David's cancer battle inspires fundraising

When David Chinnery was told he had prostate cancer back in 2019, his PSA measured at 1,160.

The revelation came as a huge shock to Mr Chinnery and his wife, Pat, who could not have been less prepared for such grim news.

Pat Chinnery pictured during her Macmillan Coffee Morning at Toftwood Village Hall in 2021 (Image: Pat Chinnery)

"We were absolutely devastated, especially when they told us what David's count was," said Mrs Chinnery. "He even fainted."

However, from the start of Mr Chinnery's ordeal, the Dereham couple were made to feel like he was in the best possible hands.

"This nurse - and I will never forget her - was just so positive," added Mrs Chinnery, who lives with her husband in Kennedy Close, Toftwood.

"She said 'we have seen worse than this. Stick with us - we know what we're doing'.

Pat and David Chinnery, who live in Kennedy Close, Toftwood (Image: Pat Chinnery)

"That nurse gave David the determination to go on."

Over the past three years, Mr Chinnery has been through the wringer, to say the least.

Following several bouts of chemotherapy, his last round of treatment stripped the 73-year-old of his white blood cells, leading to him contracting sepsis.

Then, when he developed pneumonia and tested positive for coronavirus last year, the outlook was bleak.

Pat Chinnery has been fundraising for Macmillan since her husband, David, was diagnosed with prostate cancer (Image: Pat Chinnery)

"We were told at one point he wasn't going to make it," said Mrs Chinnery. "We had a FaceTime call going and we were able to see him on the ward for potentially the last time.

"Then, all of a sudden, he was coming home the next day. David has proved time and time again that he is defiant and not ready to go upstairs just yet.

"He is an amazing person. He's had so many things thrown at him but, as far as he's concerned, he is happy to have a pulse and get up in the morning."

Thankfully, Mr Chinnery is now in remission, but his wife's fundraising for cancer charity Macmillan - which began after his diagnosis - goes on.

Pat Chinnery and her friends raised £2,000 during a Macmillan Coffee Morning at Toftwood Village Hall in 2021 (Image: Pat Chinnery)

Mrs Chinnery is getting ready to host her fourth consecutive Macmillan Coffee Morning, having raised £5,500 to date.

In 2021 alone, she and friends made a staggering £2,000 despite fears that Covid would put people off attending.

This year's edition, on September 2 at Toftwood Village Hall, will be opened by Hugh King, the mayor of Dereham.