Cancer patient Paul Johnson's wedding dream comes true on ward at Sheffield Northern General Hospital

Members of the palliative care team at the hospital, near Fir Vale, made his dream happen, after he mentioned to them that he would love to marry his partner Lise.

And on Saturday December 3 the unit celebrated the wedding of Paul, 54 and Lise, 50, when the couple, from Stannington, were married on the ward in the presence of their friends, family members and son Tommy, 14.

Paul and Lise have been together for 17 years after they met at a friend’s house party in 2005. They had wanted to marry for some time, but never found the time. Then Paul was diagnosed with advanced cancer in November 2022.

Lise made ward manager Rachel Bond aware of their wish, the previous day. The whole team, supported by one of the hospital chaplains and the superintendent registrar, worked together to make their wish come true quickly.

Speaking of their special day, Paul said: “It was lovely. I’ve been wanting to marry Lise for years; she is the love of my life. It was brilliant to be able to have our day. I was shattered afterwards, but it was worth every minute; I wouldn’t have had it any other way. I felt truly blessed. I couldn’t believe how quick it was all arranged. The team, the chaplain and the registrar were all so nice.”

‘It couldn’t have been more beautiful if we’d have been in church or anything’

Lise said: “It was really special. He’d only been in the unit a day and the team made it happen. To have our friends and family with us was amazing. It couldn’t have been more beautiful if we’d have been in church or anything.

“I still have confetti everywhere! The whole team looked after us so well, and they continue to. We are both blown away by their kindness and compassion, which is shown in everything they do to support us during this very difficult time, they thought of everything to make our wedding as special as possible, and we cannot thank them all enough.”

Ward manager Rachel said: “Paul and Lise mentioned on Friday that they wanted to get married and asked me if we could make it happen. After speaking to Paul, his face lit up – he’d been wanting to marry Lise for years.

“The team and I organised all the necessary paperwork and arranged for one of the hospital chaplains, David to visit, who liaised with the superintendent registrar, Gillian.

“On the day the staff on duty worked together to decorate the ward reception area in preparation and helped Paul to get ready for the ceremony.

Poignant day

“It was wonderful to see Paul with the biggest smile on his face. Lise looked beautiful. It was a poignant day- you could see how much they adore each other.”

Professor Mark Cobb, clinical director for therapeutics and palliative care said: “It is a great privilege for us to make a wedding happen in these circumstances and we are happy that Lise and Paul have been able to celebrate their love for one another in such a special way.”