A young woman who tragically lost her dad to advanced prostate cancer believes he would be still alive today if he hadn’t missed the warning signs.
Sunday was a bittersweet day for Maddie Cooch, 26, as she spends time with husband Daniel and their twin boys Harvey and Dawson, who will turn three on Wednesday.
It was her third Father’s Day without her beloved dad Maurice Cole, who died in March 2021 aged 58.
Ms Cooch was in the middle of planning her dream wedding when her world was rocked by her dad’s diagnosis with stage four metastatic prostate cancer in 2018.
After a battle with Crohn’s disease and an operation on his lower intestines, the Sydney truck driver did not pick up on the early hints that something was wrong.
Maurice Cole lost his battle with prostate cancer 16 months after this photo was taken. He is pictured with wife Kathryn (right) and daughters Maddie (left) and Imogen
‘It was my mum who pushed him to go to the doctor and get checked out,’ Ms Cooch told Daily Mail Australia.
‘He had lost a lot of weight and she’d noticed he’d become breathless after walking to the letterbox and whenever they went snorkelling together.
‘We’d noticed he was battling a few issues. But Dad was a very proud man and wanted to remain the man of the house, working six days a week and providing for his family.’
The cancer had spread by the time Mr Cole was diagnosed, which meant he had limited options for treatment.
‘We were told he had five to 10 years to live, which was really upsetting,’ Ms Cooch recalled.
‘It was complete shock as cancer had never directly affected our family before.’
Mr Cole underwent 10 rounds of chemotherapy followed by radiation on his leg and groin.
‘He was sick on and off for the first year but he got his PSA (prostate specific antigen) levels under control,’ Mr Cooch said.
‘He’d always try to be positive, saying “I’m fine and dandy with a touch of cancer”.’
Maurice (left) had been battling prostate cancer for 14 months when he walked his daughter Maddie (right) down on the aisle on her wedding day in November 2019
Maurice (right) got to spend six months with his baby grandsons Harvey and Dawson
Ms Cooch contemplated bringing her November 2019 wedding forward but was reassured by her father, who was adamant he would walk her down the aisle.
Her big day was bittersweet, knowing that her dad may not be around for much longer.
‘The day and the week leading up to the wedding was the healthiest he’d been in his final two-and-half years – it was as if it was meant to be,’ she said.
‘Being a Daddy’s girl, it was a lifelong dream for him to walk me down the aisle.’
Ms Cooch and her new husband decided to waste no time in planning a family in the hope Mr Cole would get to meet his first grandchildren.
Harvey and Dawson arrived just 10 months later in September 2020.
‘Dad absolutely adored and doted on the boys,’ Ms Cooch said.
‘He would get up to give their bottles, change their nappies and sing to them.’
By Christmas 2020, Mr Cole’s health was quickly deteriorating.
‘He was meant to have an operation but, by then, doctors said there was nothing more they could do,’ Ms Cooch said.
‘That news defeated him and his positivity went downhill from there.
‘Dad didn’t want to know that he was getting more sick but in the last for or five days, he knew that it was time to say goodbye.’
Maurice battled prostate cancer for two-and-a-half years before he died in March 2021
Maddie (pictured right as a little girl with Maurice) says she was always a Daddy’s girl
Mr Cole died in March 2021, 18 months short of his 60th birthday.
He spent his final two-and-half weeks in palliative care, where the family celebrated the twins turning six-months-old.
‘His goal was to be there for his grandsons’ first day of school,’ Ms Cooch said.
‘Then as he went downhill, he realised that wasn’t going to happen and changed it to being there for their first birthday. ‘
‘Instead, he ended up in his final days singing happy half-birthday to the boys.’
Ms Cooch believes her dad would be still alive today had he not ignored the warning signs early and gone to the doctor before his cancer spread.
She issued a poignant plea to all Aussie men to get their prostate checked and says her dad would give the same advice.
‘One simple trip to the doctor would have caught his cancer early and he would have still been here with us. I don’t want other people to lose their dad like me,’ she said.
‘Never be too proud to get checked out. Acknowledge and act on symptoms as soon as possible as an early diagnosis really does count.
‘Instead of trying to be the man of the house, getting checked out would make your family more proud.’
Kathryn (left) noticed that her husband Maurice (right) was getting more breathless and urged him to go to the doctor to get checked out
Doting grandfather Maurice missed out on being around or his grandsons’ first birthday
Ms Cooch, her sister Imogen and their mum Kathryn have all registered to take part in The Long Run as part of Prostate Cancer Awareness Month by walking 30km each throughout September.
The Long Run raises vital funds for prostate cancer research in the hope of funding a cure.
Prostate cancer is Australia’s most common cancer ahead of breast cancer, with one man diagnosed every 22 minutes.
More than 3,500 Australian men die from prostate cancer each year.
The disease accounts for more hospitalisations than any other type of cancer and costs the health system over $1.35billion to treat.
‘Community action during Prostate Cancer Awareness Month will provide a big boost for survival, helping us achieve the vision of zero deaths from the disease,’ Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia chief executive Anne Savage said.
Maurice would still be alive today if he had got his symptoms checked earlier, his daughter believes. He is pictured with wife Kathryn on the wedding day in 1995
Maurice (pictured) prided himself on being the man of the house and providing for his family