The widow of a well-respected north-east MSP raised almost £5,000 for charity in a bid to heighten public awareness of bowel cancer.
Linda Johnstone, the wife of Conservative politician Alex, spoke yesterday of the gap he had left behind and said she would “always miss him”.
Mrs Johnstone, daughter Christine Watson and their friends took part in the Moontrose Night Walk at the weekend and jointly – as ‘Team AJ’ – raised the money for cancer research.
She said: “The organisers did an excellent job. There were entertainers laid on throughout the night – a fire act and stilt walkers among them – and it was a good night.
“I also took my collecting bucket up to Crathes when Theresa May was visiting and got about £200 there through loose change.
“Not really being part of the campaign now, I went along anyway and it was nice to see lots of friends and people Alex worked with – but it still feels a bit raw.
“I went to the conference and that was really quite emotional.”
Mrs Johnstone added her husband had shown none of the usual symptoms of the illness and revealed he had taken part in annual bowel screenings.
The 56-year-old said: “He went to the doctor in September and was told it was probably his gall bladder or gall stones.
“But a couple of weeks later, on October 18, I came home from work to find him doubled over in pain. He died six weeks later [aged 55] on December 7.”
Mr Johnstone was a farmer before being elected as an MSP in 1999. His wife has since searched through their summer holiday photos, in an effort to find some evidence of her husband’s hidden illness.
She said: “Bowel cancer is one of those silent killers – Alex had absolutely no idea that he had this at all – he had no symptoms.
“The speed this got him at, it was very fast. I couldn’t see anything at all – there was no indication that he was unwell at all.
“I know everybody’s story is different, but I have spoken to a few folk since then and a lot of them have only lasted a few months after diagnosis.”
She said: “People can be embarrassed by anything related to their bowels, but I tell them, don’t be frightened or bashful – you have to go and see about it.”
