- Revealed he had bladder cancer that has spread across his body
- Is currently on honeymoon after getting married to his partner Adele
- Publisher hopes to bring forward release of his latest book, The Quarry
By
Rosie Taylor
06:01 EST, 3 April 2013
|
04:21 EST, 4 April 2013
Bestselling author Iain Banks has been given only months to live, he revealed yesterday.
The writer, 59, who is best known for The Wasp Factory, announced he has gallbladder cancer, is ‘unlikely’ to survive longer than a year and will bring forward publication of his latest book.
He said he had asked his partner, author and horror film curator Adele Hartley, to ‘do me the honour of becoming my widow’.
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Iain Banks (left) announced that he was now on honeymoon with his long-term partner Adele Hartley (right) after saying he has cancer that has spread through his body and is expected to kill him by the end of the year
The couple have married in private and are now on a short honeymoon.
Banks has withdrawn from all engagements and plans to spend time with friends and family. On his website, he said he was ‘officially very poorly’.
He added: ‘The bottom line now, I’m afraid, is that as a late-stage gallbladder cancer patient .?.?. it’s extremely unlikely I’ll live beyond a year.
‘So it looks like my latest novel, The Quarry, will be my last.’
Banks is an award winning writer and was named by The Times newspaper as one of the 50 greatest living authors in 2008
Publisher Little Brown is hastening the release of The Quarry to give him ‘a better chance of being around when it hits the shelves’, he said.
It was due out in October but may be ready by June.
Banks, who was born in Fife and studied at Stirling University, had success with his first novel, The Wasp Factory, in 1984.
He has written more than 20 books, including science fiction under the name Iain M Banks.
He noticed a pain in his lower back in late January but put it down to spending hours ‘crouched over a keyboard’.
‘When it hadn’t gone away by mid-February, I went to my GP, who spotted that I had jaundice,’ he said.
‘Blood tests, an ultrasound scan and then a CT scan revealed the full extent of the grisly truth by the start of March.’
The cancer, which started in his gallbladder, has spread and is effectively inoperable, he said.
He is considering whether to have chemotherapy, but cannot start treatment until his jaundice improves.
A website has been set up for fans to leave messages of support and fellow authors have expressed their sadness.
Scottish crime writer Ian Rankin referred on Twitter to Banks’s dark humour, saying: ‘Typical of Iain to propose marriage to his partner Adele with the words “Will you do me the honour of becoming my widow?â€â€™
Thriller writer Mark Edwards tweeted: ‘Just saw the sad news.
‘Wasp Factory, Walking On Glass, Crow Road – some of the best novels I’ve ever read.’
Banks wrote that he has withdrawn from all future public engagements and has married his partner, Adele
THE SILENT KILLER: GALLBLADDER CANCER
The gallbladder concentrates and stores bile from the liver as part of the digestive system. Gallbladder cancer is rare in the UK but is more common among women.
It does not cause symptoms in the early stages, grows quickly and is often not diagnosed until the cancer has spread.
Most early-stage cancers are found by chance. At more advanced stages, symptoms include jaundice, abdominal pain and nausea. If the cancer is diagnosed early enough, surgery is the most effective treatment.
As it advances it can spread to lymph nodes, the liver and other organs. Radiotherapy and chemotherapy can be used to stem its spread but only one patient in ten with advanced gallbladder cancer survives for five years.
Vanda Taylor, of Cancer Research UK, said: ‘Gallbladder cancer is seldom diagnosed early and therefore can be very difficult to treat successfully.’
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Such sad news. I attended a talk of his a few years ago and he was so friendly, funny and engaging. I wish him the best of times with his loved ones and hope the rest of his life will be as comfortable as possible.
Amy
,
London,
04/4/2013 10:17
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Why do all these people who are terminal always marry their partner? why arnt they married before???? or are they just left wing scottish gits like most of the labour party
cymru
,
swansea,
04/4/2013 09:55
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It says in your article that a website has been set up for the public to send messages. Can someone give the name of this website ? Thank you
Maria Magdalena
,
Hawick,
04/4/2013 09:36
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What a legacy to have left the world.
Purps
,
Horsham,
04/4/2013 09:14
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Dear miss Widdicombe your fellow catholic Mick Philpotts has booked his passage to heaven whilst the atheist Iain Banks is presumably destined for hell.Please explain.
Dave Cockburn
,
newcastle, United Kingdom,
04/4/2013 08:58
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One of the modern greats.. We should call for the GSV Sleeper Service. Say hello to Heinlein for me when you get where you’re going. You’re a legend, sir!
Opinions Please
,
East Midlands, United Kingdom,
04/4/2013 08:35
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He’ll be away the crow Road, then? Keep on fighting…
Gordy
,
Edinburgh,
04/4/2013 06:16
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I am sorry to read your sad news sir. It is always difficult to know what to say in these circumstances and as an author I am sure you would be able to put it far more eloquently than I. But heartfelt thanks for the legacy you have left us in your books and good wishes to yourself and your wife for the time you have left together.
My opinion
,
London,
04/4/2013 06:14
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Oh, my husband will be sad there will be just a single extra book to add to his shelf of Iain Banks novels.
I smell a Rat
,
London, United Kingdom,
03/4/2013 22:51
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Google “phoenixtears†you never know Iain.
The Saracens Head
,
England, United Kingdom,
03/4/2013 22:15
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