Hiya I'm Karen and I am going to have major surgery to remove a large clear cell carcinoma (cancer) from my left kidney, possibly the whole kidney. It was discovered after CT and MRI scans in October last year due to a heart attack at the end of may 2025. I'm a support worker for adults with learning disabilities but my employer doesn't pay any type of sick pay apart from statutory sick pay. I take home approximately £1900 per month due to working 42 hours a week and the sick pay will only pay me approximately £480 per month. I will be using the money to be paying my bills so I can recover properly without the constant worry about getting better quickly in order to get back to work. I want to be able to take my time and recover appropriately. Having cancer is such a debilitating thing you feel exhausted and fatigued all the time, it takes every effort to get up each day and go to work to do my job which is very full on emotionally, mentally and physically. I hate to ask people for help but I really don't know what else to do as I want to recover fully before returning to work. Thank you for reading my story I really appreciate it

Karen