A Christmas on Yarty - Adele's story

Christmas 2018 is a time Adele will never forget. Earlier that summer, she had been diagnosed with B-cell lymphoma and soon began an intense schedule of chemotherapy, followed by radiotherapy and surgery to treat complications that, at times, felt worse than the cancer itself. Many weeks of that year was spent in and out of hospital, and by December she was exhausted from her latest round of treatment. 

Adele’s parents had travelled down to Devon from Yorkshire to help look after her. The plan was to spend Christmas at home together, but a few days before, something didn’t feel right. District nurses visited and were concerned. Adele deteriorated quickly, and despite being adamant she didn’t want to spend Christmas in hospital, the nurses returned on Christmas Eve and insisted she needed urgent care. 

At 4pm, she was admitted to the Yarty Ward at the Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital. 

“I remember thinking everything looked so stark,” Adele recalls. “Because I was in isolation, I couldn’t even see the Christmas trees on the ward. It didn’t feel like Christmas at all.” 

But the next morning, something changed. Waiting on the table beside her bed was a Christmas gift bag provided by ELF.  

“That gift bag sticks in my mind. It was the only bright, cheerful, Christmassy thing in the room. It meant so much. Just waking up to that was enough to lift my spirits.” 

Adele’s parents were able to visit for a few hours, bringing a couple of small presents so she’d still have something to open. A nurse sat with her for a chat, offering warmth and kindness when she needed it most. One of the consultants’ wives even brought in homemade cakes—though Adele jokes she couldn’t taste a thing at the time. 

She also received a blood transfusion on Christmas Day. 

“I like to think of that as my Secret Santa present,” she says with a smile. 

Despite the fear and exhaustion, pieces of the day still make her smile. 

“Looking back, it was such a hard Christmas… but I don’t have totally bad memories of it. We were together, I had presents to open, and it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. I was in tears on Christmas Eve, but it really wasn’t that bad.” 

This year, Adele is hoping to spend Christmas back in Yorkshire with her family—something that once felt impossible. 

ELF is proud to have played a small part in making one of her toughest Christmases a little brighter.