73-year-old Trevor Day and his wife Coby live in Swindon and have been playing bridge on and off for almost 50 years. A retired BT worker, Trevor is now an ordained Church of England associate minister, serving in the parishes of west Swindon.
Having personally experienced cancer, Trevor is thrilled that the EBU is partnering with Cancer Research UK.
“I think it’s an excellent idea,” he says. “Cancer is the blight of so many lives and the more research that can be done on things such as causes, diagnosing, and treatments, the better.”
Trevor’s interaction with the game has evolved over the last few years, and not just because of his diagnosis.
“A house move and three children put a temporary stop to both Coby and I playing bridge, but our interest was reignited around 8 years ago when we found a local afternoon class,” explains Trevor. “Our passion for the game began to increase again and soon we were playing twice a week for the English Bridge Union’s Swindon Bridge Club. Covid put a temporary stop to our face-to-face games, but this now means that today we can enjoy playing the game both online and in person.”
During this time, Trevor was experiencing some health changes. An active chorister, Trevor first noticed something was different with his voice when he travelled to Salisbury Cathedral to sing with one of its choirs.
“I could still sing but I knew something wasn’t quite right and, after tests in 2008, I was diagnosed with an early stage laryngioma. I had operations to try to remove it, but 11 years later I was told it had grown to become a late stage 3-4 laryngioma.”
Treatment was a laryngectomy, a partial removal of his thyroid, and radiotherapy and chemotherapy.
In 2019, Trevor underwent the laryngectomy – a six-hour operation to remove his larynx, during which a valve was inserted between his trachea (windpipe) and oesophagus (which connects the mouth to the stomach) so that he would be able to speak more easily. Less than a week later, Trevor spoke his first words since the operation and was home just 12 days later.
Trevor’s love for the game was a constant throughout his treatment.
“It was while I was in hospital that I started using Bridge Club Live (BCL) on my iPad to ensure I could continue to play bridge and keep my mind active,” says Trevor. “I’d say that bridge has certainly helped me through my recovery and has enabled me to get back to community activities. I don't need to speak very much – the bidding boxes and the play of the cards do my speaking for me.”
For more information about Cancer Research UK, please visit cruk.org.