“Shwmae Tenby, I have finally reached your beautiful town. I am 36 years old with incurable stage 4 skin cancer and I am walking the whole coast of Wales (876 miles) for the charity Melanoma Focus.”
Luke’s journey first started in 2014 when he noticed an unusual mole on his back which was diagnosed as Melanoma skin cancer. “Being ignorant, at the time, I thought, ‘it’s just skin, it can be cut out,’” he admitted on his justgiving page. Indeed, the cancer was localised and could simply be surgically removed.
Five years later, another mole appeared and was again removed, but something wasn’t right. Luke began to suffer from swelling and feelings of nausea and weakness. A biopsy confirmed Stage 4 Metastatic Melanoma. It had spread across Luke’s skin and into the lymphatic system.
“Raising awareness into skin cancer is very important as it’s a cancer on the increase. Remember to wear SPF 50 sun cream every two hours when out and to get any peculiar moles checked by a GP or dermatologist. My melanoma started on my back and was no bigger than a pencil tip.”
Luke receives treatment from Guys and St. Thomas hospital in London.
“I continue to take targeted treatment daily and although I do suffer from side effects, I now have a good quality of life again. However, this treatment has a shelf life with an average response of 12 to 14 months....I am now on my 15th month. I will continue to fight this disease and live in hope that I have many years ahead of me, especially with continuing advances in medicine.
“I know times are hard but if you could donate or even share the page would mean so much. Any donation would be greatly appreciated and will go to a very important cause. Love and protect your skin.”
You can visit https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/mybigcancerwalk to read Luke’s full story or make a donation.