In January 2025 I was diagnosed with advanced, aggressive, metastatic, stage 4 prostate cancer after getting what felt like indigestion over Christmas (not that unusual for Christmas Day but this was ahead of lunch!).
It still feels surreal to say that.
I was 44 years old, a father of two wonderful children (2 and 7) and husband to a lovely wife with whom I planned to have a long future.
The cancer had already spread to my bones and lymph nodes. The doctors told me it was incurable.
I am a litigation and insolvency lawyer. I am used to trying to solve problems. No matter how hard I have to work, I find solutions. I’m stubborn, and I don’t like to lose.
My firm was great and gave me the time I needed for the most important fight of my life. I threw myself into anything and everything that suggested it could help.
My theory was to apply marginal gains to my conventional treatment (which I discovered would be chemotherapy and radiotherapy). This was in part because I wanted to improve the statistics that applied to my case, but also because I needed to feel I was actively doing something to assist my survival rate and ensure I was there for the kids, my wife, my family and my friends, for as long as possible.
This blog explores the various things that I tried out. It is not medical advice and should not be taken as such. Cancer is a large umbrella term and while some things may be applicable across different cancers, others may not even apply to two people with the same diagnosis.
Hopefully this may provide someone with an idea that will help them, or just provide a release for me to explore my ideas and a vent for the frustration that I often feel. Maybe both.
Fighting Stage 4 