My first appointment with an oncologist was the worst. I remember him saying, “You have to prepare yourself that this may not be a good outcome. The only thing I can do is put you on chemotherapy, because it doesn’t work.”
This was at a hospital in Cheltenham, where I was sent after initial examinations at the local hospital, Hereford Nuffield. My wife was with me and she was crying a lot. Then they said, “I’m sorry, these results are tumors in your liver.” You have seven of them. The largest is 5cm. ” It was May 2016.
But just over a year later in July 2017, everything had changed. The tumors had shrunk and he was able to operate on my liver. The doctor who operated on me said, “It’s amazing.” My liver was cancer free. It was what he called “the perfect answer”, and out of 1,250 patients he had seen it in six people. We were very happy. He sent me to a colonologist who went to look for primary cancer and found no trace of it in my stomach, even though this thing was measured and he had pictures of it. Again, it was a perfect answer – a first to see at the time.
It was the best result we could have hoped for. It had been the worst year of my life and I couldn’t believe it.
Preliminary examination
Back to the beginning: I was 44 years old and I was experiencing symptoms – I had pain above my hip, where I put my hockey injury, and sometimes I bled in my stools. I went to the doctor but they never worried because I was fit and healthy. Finally I had a private doctor through the health plan from my company, Colliers, who referred me to a sigmoidoscopy – similar to a colonoscopy with a camera on the tube, but in the lower part of the stomach. The doctor said we should wait for the results, but then he told us that it looked like I had a terrible cancer.
(LR) Martyn with his sons Joel, Fergus and his wife Melanie, pictured on the day he received his diagnosis.
I’m strong, but you feel like you’re under pressure all of a sudden. You don’t want to be there. It just feels like a weight on you. I said to my wife, “Come on, we’re going home.” The diagnosis was confirmed a week later. Then we found out that the colon cancer had metastasized to the liver.
When the oncologist at Cheltenham told me to prepare for the worst, he reassured me that I was strong and that this would help me a lot when it came to treatment. I had 16 rounds of chemo in the end.
I’m a good person and although it wouldn’t be everyone’s choice I posted on Facebook that I was diagnosed with cancer. Suddenly there was an attack of counsel. Fifty people must have said: “Get a sports car, go on vacation.”
But the two pieces are completely different. A friend from my village said, “I know this cancer doctor.” He shines. He has a fellowship in cancer care. You have to talk to him.” The other one was a guy from my work whose father’s friend had the same thing and went to take a drug called cetuximab. I asked my oncologist about it and he explained that it was a monoclonal antibody drug, that finds and destroys cancer cells, but is only effective in 50 percent of cases. I was tested and came back right and the oncologist explained that they would use it at the same time as my other transplants.
Food complements chemotherapy
I also met the health practitioner, Jo Gamble. At first I admit I thought, “Oh, he’s just another nutritionist.” But after a little research I found that he trained in the US in functional medicine and has a fellowship in integrative oncology – he explained that this uses holistic medicine and nutrition along with conventional cancer treatments “to improve health and reduce the side effects of conventional treatment.”.
We used to talk on the phone. Jo said she would use food to boost my immune system during treatment. He said I could still get cheese, but it would be sheep’s or goat’s cheese. I could drink milk, but it wouldn’t be dairy, either coconut or oat milk. I also had to stay away from anything that had refined sugar in it or that was highly processed. I’ll be eating a vegetable and fruit shake in the morning. And he was very much about organic root vegetables, reducing red meat, very white meat, white fish, things like organic kale.
Martyn is undergoing chemotherapy at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham
My wife was amazing. He took over and changed all of our habits. The kids were still on chicken nuggets and pizza, but suddenly I was eating different foods than everyone else. The goal was not to replace the treatment but to constantly increase the effect of chemotherapy and antibody therapy through nutrition.
My daily diet
Chemo made me feel angry – nauseous, and diarrhoea. I couldn’t sleep after the injection – my eyes felt like they were on stalks. The whole time I was doing chemo I was continuing the antibody treatment with advice from Jo.
The daily meal was boiled vegetables and a piece of chicken, without any sauce. The emphasis was on fresh vegetables, lean protein, olive oil and supplements like vitamin D for my immunity. Protein is an important building block, which builds your new blood cells, DNA cells and immune cells. Good fats like olive oil help reduce inflammation, as well as eating lots of plants.
One thing that Jo also really wanted to get into my body was turmeric because she said that turmeric is anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer. I think he recommended boiling coconut milk with ginger in it – a spoonful of this warm drink was like drinking a horrible chicken korma. So I cooked my own curry. I created my own recipe as a way to get turmeric into my system.
Time to heal
My new diet was good on one level but combined with chemo, antibody treatment and other medications it was a very difficult time. The oncologist and the nutritionist watched me constantly. I was really focused on getting better. I continued to work but my employer was very understanding, so I could stick to the routine. I never missed a tablet. The nurses who gave me my medicine at home said they were surprised how many people returned the pills because they couldn’t take them.
Martyn and his friend Iain who shaved his head while Martyn was undergoing chemotherapy
The lowest point was when I lost my hair. I saw it gathered under the shower. But instead of letting it throw me off, I just thought, I’m going to shave it. One of my friends said he was going to cut his hair at the same time. We did it in his kitchen. You are in a very lonely place with cancer and this was good.
I remember walking into the office for the first time without hair and everyone turning to look at me. I can only imagine what it must be like for a child – that’s why I’m supporting this cancer charity, the Little Princess Trust, which funds children’s cancer research and also funds children’s hair wigs. The child gets a choice of three wigs – he chooses one and it is sent to the stylist, and they make it as they like.
It turned out well
The thing that kept me going was that my results were always improving. My three month review showed improvement each time. After 10 months of chemo and antibiotics, the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham confirmed that my liver was working. I had an operation on my liver and two months later I got the all-clear. A month later the colon surgeon performed a full colonoscopy to rule out the primary cancer and missed it.
Martyn (R) and his friends dressed up as Fools and Horses only to raise money for the Little Princess Trust.
I’ll never know if it was the chemo, the anti-soldier drug, the diet, the beauty or sticking to my plan that worked for me. Maybe it was everything. But after a horrible prognosis I feel healthy and fit and have been clear for almost 8 years. During treatment you backload emotions. It was like training for an Olympic event and you park anything like that. With the children we tried to continue as usual but we had this threat. You should try to be positive to everyone around you. After I got the all-clear we started to appreciate life more. You believe every day you open the curtains and you are there.
As told to Miranda McMinn
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