Leia J.

About Leia J.

“I’ve got cancer” are the words no child should have to hear from one of their parents, let alone both. That’s why I’m trying to raise as much awareness of prostate cancer as possible.. To stop other children from going through what I went through, and to raise awareness that prostate cancer can affect younger men.

When I was just 10 years old, my Mum was diagnosed with malignant melanoma skin cancer at the age of 41. The 12 months that followed were the most difficult of my life, as I watched my mum go from being perfectly fit and healthy, to dependent on round-the-clock care. For the final weeks of her life, the hospice she was staying in for palliative care became a second home for me and my Dad. One memory that will always stick with me is trying on my high school uniform at the hospice so that she could see me wearing it, as deep down we all knew she wouldn’t be able to wave me off on my first day. My mum passed away at the age of 42, three weeks before I started high school.

Then, almost 5 years later and just days after I finished high school, my Dad sat me down and broke the news that he too had been diagnosed with cancer, aged just 40. My initial reaction was to laugh, as I couldn’t believe this could be happening to our family again. I feared the worst, that I’d soon be left with no parents. However, this time was different, as straight away my Dad told me that his doctors had reassured him that his was fully treatable by radical prostatectomy, during which the prostate, and cancer within it, would be fully removed.

At 40 years old, my Dad was the youngest man his consultant had seen with the disease. NHS guidelines state that men over the age of 50 should be checked for prostate cancer if they display symptoms such as frequent urination, strain when urinating or lower back pain. It was only after numerous doctors’ appointments that he had his PSA (prostate specific antigen) levels checked, which were high enough to warrant a biopsy which confirmed he had prostate cancer. As I was going through my GCSEs at the time, he only told me of his diagnosis once my exams were over and before the operation to remove the prostate. Fortunately, the removal was a complete success, yet upon further examination doctors found that the tumour they originally believed was slow growing was in fact quite aggressive.

Whilst my Dad was recovering from his operation, I had just started my A-Levels, and since being aware of the devastating effects of cancer from a young age, decided to study Biomedical Science at university. During my first year, I realised that I wanted to pursue a career in cancer research, so after graduating with first class honours in 2016, I went on to study for a masters in oncology. I was then fortunate enough to be accepted onto a collaborative PhD programme between Swansea, UK and Texas, USA, researching markers which may provide potential new targets in the treatment of prostate cancer. I am now working on my PhD as a Graduate Research Fellow at Houston Methodist, Texas Medical Center.

I have worked on several campaigns with Prostate Cancer UK, including TV commercials, blog posts, magazine interviews and public engagement.

Share on: Facebook | Twitter
Read More | Submit your Story