Meet Luke
Luke lives with his wife Kerry, twin daughters, and two dogs. Here he shares what's kept him going and what good cancer care really means to him.
The first diagnosis
I was first diagnosed with osteosarcoma (a type of bone cancer) in April 1997. I was 12 years old. One minute I was doing the triple jump at school, the next I was skidding across gravel. My leg had just given way.
I saw a bulge inside my knee, about the size of a tennis ball. Within days, I went from my GP to Conquest Hospital in Hastings, then to Middlesex Hospital in London. Everything moved fast.
I didn't understand how serious it was. The cancer had spread to my lungs, feet and other knee. Doctors gave me three to six months. They offered chemotherapy to prolong life, or an aggressive trial treatment. I said, "Let's try it." That decision changed everything. Out of 500 patients, only two survived that trial. I was one of them.
Moving forward
I've met many friends through cancer, some who didn't get the chance I have. I live for them. I live for my girls. I live for Kerry.
Good cancer care is about more than medicine. It's about support, positivity and finding joy in the everyday.
Surgery, setbacks and starting over
After surgery to replace my knee and tibia with a prosthesis, life slowly returned to normal. But cancer came back in 1999, this time in my rib. More surgery followed.
By my early twenties, I was working, married and dreaming of children. Chemotherapy had left me infertile, but thanks to a frozen sample stored years earlier, IVF gave us twin girls in 2011.
Then came another blow. An infection in my leg meant choosing between months of recovery or amputation. I chose amputation. It was tough, but quick. I was back at work within weeks, until I broke my elbow hopping across a room! Life was chaotic, but we kept moving forward.
Facing new diagnoses
In 2020, I was diagnosed with soft tissue sarcoma, unrelated to my original cancer. Surgery again. Then more in 2021 and 2022 as tumours appeared near major blood vessels. By 2023, doctors said there was nothing more they could do except palliative radiotherapy. They gave me 6–12 months. Yet here I am, stable and still living life in 2025.
What good cancer care means
For me, good cancer care isn't about dwelling on the diagnosis. It's about clear, practical information and a positive outlook.
My consultant at the Royal Marsden doesn't sugarcoat things but focuses on what can be done. Medical options, support from Macmillan, and ways to keep life moving. That attitude matters. Positivity matters. If you sit and mope, you go twice as fast. I believe in medicine, but I also believe in hope.
Macmillan has been a lifeline. Their support line helped my wife, Kerry, through the hardest times. They gave us advice on talking to our daughters, and even spotted an infection that could have been fatal. Without them, life would have been chaotic.
Everyday things that make a difference
Cancer takes a toll physically and mentally. I've lost mobility and had to retire early, which was hard. But small things help.
Kerry has been my rock.
Our dogs, Jupiter the springer spaniel and Nix the black puppy, give me purpose and joy. Pets don't care how you feel; they just want to play. That simple, everyday companionship is powerful.
We've moved to a bungalow to make life easier.
I use an electric wheelchair now. These adjustments aren't defeats; they're ways to keep living well.