Dad Given 12 Months to Live After Chilling Warning Sign While Eating Sandwich

A dad from Blackpool has been given just a year to live after a seemingly normal breakfast turned into a life-changing moment. Des Longstaff, 39, was at work when he sat down to eat a bacon and sausage sandwich—only to realise something was wrong, reported the Manchester Evening News.

“I hadn’t put any sauce on or anything, but it got lodged in my oesophagus,” he recalled. Despite drinking a pint of water, the food wouldn’t budge. “It was to the point where you’re thinking you’re choking,” he said. “I thought to myself, ‘Am I not chewing it properly?’”

Concerned, Des visited his doctor, who recommended an endoscopy. Before he could have the procedure, he started vomiting blood and later noticed blood in his stool. He was sent to the hospital immediately, where a 35cm tumour was discovered in his lower oesophagus on Christmas Eve, Bristol Live reports.

Des had hoped for keyhole surgery to remove the tumour, but further scans revealed devastating news—the cancer had already spread to his liver. He was diagnosed with stage four oesophageal adenocarcinoma, an aggressive cancer of the food pipe.

Doctors told him it was terminal, estimating he had just 12 months to live. But Des is determined to fight for as much time as possible with his five-year-old son. “The NHS has only given me 12 months to live,” he said. “I couldn’t just knock it back—I have to try everything to stop it from spreading all over the place.”

He has since started immunotherapy, a treatment that trains his white blood cells to attack the cancer, alongside a mild form of chemotherapy to help keep him comfortable. But his best hope lies in cutting-edge treatment in Germany, where doctors take a completely different approach to cases like his.

His mum, Tracy, has set up a GoFundMe page to raise funds for the trip, explaining: “Des is unable to work and will not be able to for the foreseeable future. We are exploring new treatments in Germany to give Des the best chance of a five-year-plus life expectancy.”

So far, the fundraiser has brought in more than £31,000. The treatment, which costs €52,000 (around £43,000), offers a glimmer of hope. In Germany, doctors will inject Des’s liver with a high dose of chemotherapy, precisely targeting the cancerous spots without harming the rest of his body. They will also cut off the main artery feeding the tumour in his oesophagus, allowing it to die before surgically removing it.

Des knows this is his last shot, but he remains hopeful. “If you are terminal, you are riddled with it—but I’m not,” he said. “At the moment, I have two small dots in my liver, and they will turn into tumours if I am not careful. The idea is to go to Germany where they are going to target the liver and scrape around my diaphragm and stomach lining. They’ll rebuild the stomach lining with mesh.”

Thanking those who have already donated, Des is holding on to hope that the treatment will give him more time with his little boy. “It’s my only hope to see my five-year-old grow up. He is the apple of my eye.”