In Bangor Cathedral today, family, friends and admirers remember, express gratitude for, and celebrate the life of Irfon. We need hardly utter his full name. Irfon Williams came to prominence through his battle with cancer. It was a personal battle for him—a battle for his health and for life itself. That battle required courage and determination, and Irfon showed those qualities in abundance. But Irfon’s battle turned into a battle for everyone who was facing, or who had faced, the same crisis in their life—and everyone who could face it at some point, and that, of course, includes each and every one of us.

It was while helping the tenor Rhys Meirion shave Irfon’s head at the Urdd Eisteddfod in Bala that I first met him after his diagnosis. The goal was to raise money at that time, and raising awareness was equally important to Irfon, and raising awareness—in his words—of the right to a fighting chance, the right to a chance to access treatment, the universal right of everyone to have the opportunity to survive the cruelty of cancer.

It was very fitting that Irfon had become a key member of the panel reviewing patient funding requests in Wales, and that that had resulted in a system that we all hope will lead to greater equity for patients wherever they are. But today, as we send our deepest condolences to his wife, Becky, and the children, we remember Irfon as a gentleman who was, and who will remain, an inspiration to so many.