I don't regret saying 'I wish I had breast cancer'... I'd have a better chance ...
By Christine Challand and Jonathan Petre
PUBLISHED: 17:10 EST, 8 February 2014 | UPDATED: 17:10 EST, 8 February 2014
Even TV presenter Gloria Hunniford, whose daughter died of breast cancer, denounced the campaign, saying it had made her feel 'almost sick'.
She said: 'I know I upset a lot of people by saying what I did, but it's true. If I had breast cancer rather than pancreatic cancer, it is almost certain I wouldn't now be dying. Instead I've been told I've only got four to five months to live.
'Hopefully the campaign will lead to more money being spent on research into pancreatic cancer. It won't help me, but I hope it will mean others will have a better chance than I have.'
Kerry, one of three sufferers to appear in the campaign, said: 'I will never regret saying it publicly. I'm not saying that breast cancer is easier to deal with.
In November, doctors told her to focus on palliative care rather than further treatment. She said: 'I've received so much support from Pancreatic Cancer Action so I didn't hesitate when they asked me to join the campaign.'
Gloria Hunniford, who set up the Caron Keating Foundation in memory of her daughter who died in 2004, called the campaign 'very insensitive'. She said: 'I feel almost sick when I read the words "I wish I had breast cancer".
'I watched my daughter battle breast cancer for seven years. At no time would she have said, ''I've have preferred another form of cancer.'' She didn't want it at all. You can't play one cancer against another.'
A spokeswoman for Pancreatic Cancer Action added: 'We're all campaigning for the same cause - to improve everyone's chance of beating cancer.
'We are trying to create a discussion and a debate to make people realise that when faced with a pancreatic cancer diagnosis and a survival rate of only three per cent, it is not unreasonable to wish for a significantly better chance of staying alive.'
