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I don’t look sick. But people don’t see me going and getting my blood tested for my kidney function, or my liver.

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They don’t see me waiting to see the results.  

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Because I had worked manually all my life, I had begun to notice that my hands were swelling up, in particular, my right hand. My GP had sent me to a specialist clinic where part of the growth of my hand was removed and a biopsy revealed nothing.  

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I decided to go privately to a rheumatologist who sent me to an orthopedic surgeon. He could see that the joint had completely worn away.

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He said, ‘I will replace both knuckles, but I won’t treat you as a private patient, I’m going to transfer you back to my NHS list.’ When I asked him why, he said words to me that I’ll never forget, ‘it wouldn’t be fair otherwise.’

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He carried the surgery out on me, and I’ll forever be grateful to that man. 

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