Dad who thought cough was Covid dies of lung cancer aged 35
A dad-of-four who thought an irritating cough was Covid-19 has died of cancer at just 35 years of age.
Daniel Muir died at home in Anglesey on October 12 following a short battle with lung cancer.
His wife Nerys has spoken of her heartbreak just three weeks after losing her ‘soulmate’.
The mum hopes speaking about her grief will raise awareness because “lung cancer doesn't have to be a death sentence if found early.”
Nerys said losing Daniel often feels “too hard to talk about” but she wants to make her late husband proud by spreading the word.
She said: “All you need to get lung cancer is lungs. My husband didn't smoke and there is no way we would have ever have thought it would be something serious.
“Even Daniel’s lung doctor was devastated and shocked - in his 25 years of working the field he has never met someone as young as Daniel with such an aggressive form of cancer.
“It's important no one goes through watching their loved one disappear in front of them by something like this.”
Nerys says she feels angry that the cancer wasn’t spotted sooner and urged others to learn about the symptoms.
She said: “Lung cancer is always thought to be something smokers get, or the elderly.
“I'm angry and I'm sad that we thought the scariest thing it could be was Covid.”
When Daniel began to feel tired and developed a cough in November 2020, the couple put his symptoms down to work stress.
As his cough worsened, they worried it could be Covid, but they never imagined it would be cancer.
“The cough wasn't aggressive so we didn’t think it was anything to worry about. His Covid tests came back negative so we ignored it.
When Daniel began experiencing back pain a month later, he still thought nothing of it.
'He's the bravest man I've ever known'
It wasn’t until a month later, in January of this year, that Daniel finally went to see his GP and following a string of appointments, was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer.
He had a tumour in his lung which had spread to his pelvis and spine, but despite this devastating news, the young couple remained hopeful.
Nerys said: “We stayed positive, although we were petrified - he had age on his side so there was no reason for us to be fearful. He’s the bravest man I've ever known.”
Following intense chemo and radiotherapy, the family was given the heartbreaking news that there was nothing else that could be done. Daniel passed away 18 days later.
Daniel was dad to Ava, 12, and Izzy, 10, who live in Kent with their mother, and six-year-old Elijah who he shared with Nerys.
He was also a loving stepdad to Nery's nine-year-old son Nathaniel, who he treated"as his own".
Nerys said her husband’s biggest fear was leaving his four children and that they spoke about them in his final few moments.
She said: “When Daniel was taking his final breaths I promised him I would take care of all the children.
“He wouldn't show anyone his struggle through his sickness so no one realised how bad things were, except for me, because I was with him every day caring for him.
“He was scared of dying so chose not to talk about it.”
After Daniel's untimely death, a fundraising page was set up to raise money for the children called "make the children smile".
What are the symptoms of lung cancer?
The main symptoms of lung cancer include:
a cough that doesn’t go away after 2 or 3 weeks
a long-standing cough that gets worse
an ache or pain when breathing or coughing
persistent breathlessness
persistent tiredness or lack of energy
loss of appetite or unexplained weight loss
If you have any of these, you should see a GP.
Nerys explained: “Daniel didn't have insurance, there's no savings or anything, his biggest fear was leaving the children.
“He was scared that his sons who live in Anglesey wouldn't be able to see his daughters who live in Kent without him.
“But myself and their mother have come together to make sure that we can do things together.”
Daniel, who worked as a chef at Catch 22 Brasserie in Holyhead, was also passionate about music and played in a band called The Submission.
In the months before he passed away he performed with his band, raising almost £4,000 for Cancer Research and the Alaw ward at Ysbyty Gwynedd where he had been receiving treatment.
You can donate to the fundraiser for Daniel’s children here.