Tuesday 27 May 2025
Maggie's, Newcastle
Having a new baby and turning the big 4-0 saw Anthony take up running to ensure a healthy future with his son. Little did he know that this would potentially save his life.
As a new dad, Anthony wanted to make sure he was a fit and active parent and would be able to play sports like football, cycling and hiking as his boy, Alfie, grew up.
So in January 2024, Anthony, from Ryton, near Newcastle, first started running 5Ks. He quickly progressed to longer runs too, but early on in his regime, he noticed some blood in his urine.
My story is a warning to all men to never to shy away from going to the doctor's.
Turning to Google for answers, Anthony felt informed that he had a common runner’s condition known as ‘exercise-induced haematuria’, so he didn’t approach his GP at the time.
“I know you’re not supposed to, but everyone googles symptoms, and nine times out of ten, ‘Doctor Google’ comes back with answers that are terrifying. But on this one occasion, it threw back that blood in the urine was just something that runners got, so I got on with it and I kept training.
It was four months down the line before Anthony did finally seek help from his doctor, and he’s so glad that he did.
“Luckily, when it didn’t go away, I did go to my GP. At first, my GP though the odds of it being something sinister were very slim, because I was a fit and healthy younger man. But he did give me a full MOT and I had bloods taken. Then I got called back to go to hospital for an endoscopy and I found out that very day that I had bladder cancer.
“A trip to my GP saved my life and my future with my wife Kirsty and my son Alfie. I think that, in a way, Alfie saved my life. If it wasn’t for him being a new baby in my life and my decision to get fitter for him, then I might not have discovered I had this.”
Anthony is now one year on from being diagnosed with bladder cancer. He has been through a lot, including having his bladder removed. But following his operation, he was delighted to be given the ‘all clear from cancer’ news.
Now he is getting on with family life and seeking new adventures with his wife Kirsty and little Alfie, who is now two.
Treatment options were explained to Anthony on the day of his diagnosis. He explains: “There was an option to have radiotherapy treatment and then go through targeted chemotherapy directly into my bladder, or another option to have my whole bladder removed.
“The option with far better odds of the cancer not returning was to have my bladder removed. I made up my mind there and then that’s what I would do.”
Anthony said the nurse specialist at the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle who explained the operation to him also suggested visiting Maggie’s.
“My NHS medical team at The Freeman were brilliant; they saved my life physically, but they also introduced me to Maggie’s, Newcastle from day one, and I believe it was Maggie’s that saved me mentally and emotionally.
“Being told you have cancer is shocking, but Maggie’s is such a warm and welcoming space where I was able to get help from professional staff. I also found I could speak to other people in a bladder cancer group who had been through my situation.
“Just being able to meet and speak to others, who had been through it and were still very active and still doing big adventures like cycling from coast to coast really gave me the confidence to go for the bladder removal operation.”
Anthony adds: “There were times, especially very early on, when I didn’t yet have a date for my operation and I felt like I was in the wilderness; life seemed to lose its colour. I felt numb to have been diagnosed and I didn’t know what the future would hold.
But once I’d visited Maggie’s where it was warm and colourful, I knew that they could arm me with all the positive information for going into my operation. Every time I visited, it made me feel much better and I felt confident when I finally went in for my operation a few months later.”
Anthony had his bladder removal operation in September 2024. Six weeks later he went back to work as an instructional designer and he started exercising again as soon as he could.
He says: “At first, I wondered how I would feel about having a stoma. I had a moment where I thought, this is going to be me for the rest of my life. But I now know there is nothing I can’t do with it.
“Alfie is now two years old and I run around after him all the time. We’ve recently been on a family holiday to Spain, and I’m currently in training to run the Great North Run this September to raise funds to give something back to Maggie’s for all their help.
“Lots of men, including friends of mine have said: ‘If I was told I had cancer, I would just go into my own head. I wouldn’t have reached out for help.’ And before cancer, I would never have thought this was for me either. But I was happy to reach out for support and to find out that Maggie’s could support me and my family.
I’ve tried to keep a positive mindset all along. I think that is very important.
“It’s good to be able to go to Maggie’s to get information on your treatment and you can do this at any stage before or after surgery.
“I found a fantastic book on everything I was going through in the library at Maggie’s and I knew exactly what was going to happen in my operation. This really helped.
“It’s also great to be able to speak with others going through some of the same things because then you can better feel in control knowing that others have come through it. I certainly felt better able to cope and better equipped going into my operation.
“When people hear the word ‘cancer’ they automatically think, ‘I’m going to die’, but what I learned from one of the staff at Maggie’s was that: whatever a diagnosis throws at you and your family, life is still worth living.
“I still attend the bladder cancer support group to show others than you can come through this and you can get on with your life.
“I hope my story encourages other men to get out of their heads and to know that support is available from places like Maggie’s, no matter what age you are. And to know that this support can make your life much easier.”
Our cancer support specialists, psychologists and benefits advisors are here for everyone with cancer, and all the people who love them.
To find your nearest Maggie's centre, enter your postcode or town below.
Stay up to date with our news and fundraising by signing up for our newsletter.
Sign up
