As the 2024 Paralympic Games begin

I first received a diagnosis of lymphoma in January 2008. I was 16 years old and studying sports science at college and living life like any normal teenager. Sport is all I have ever wanted to do, and even at a young age I was a keen rugby player and loved playing cricket and golf.

The main thing I remember before getting my diagnosis was finding a lump in my groin. I wasn’t too concerned about it and left it for a while thinking it would go away. But I started to get pain in my hip and at that point I decided to get it checked out. It was actually the niggling pain that was more of a concern to me than the lump, as it was starting to interfere with my day-to-day activities. I had no other symptoms of lymphoma, and even initial blood tests were coming back normal. But the GP sent me for a referral straight away owing to the lump, and a very short time after I had an ultrasound and a CT scan, followed by a biopsy which revealed a diagnosis of lymphoma.

I remember thinking that I didn’t want to know all the details about my condition. I just wanted to get better. One of the treatment options I was given at the time was to go onto active monitoring, as I had a slow growing form of lymphoma. I was even told that I could carry on playing sport. The idea was that I could receive either radiotherapy or chemotherapy at a later date if the lymphoma reached a point where my medical team felt that treatment was required.

My preference would have been to receive radiotherapy to get rid of it, as I didn’t like the thought of chemo. But two weeks after I received my diagnosis, I broke my neck playing sports which threw a massive spanner in the works, and it left me unable to walk.

It ultimately ended up being six months between my diagnosis and receiving treatment while everything settled down after my accident. At that point, my medical team did feel that treatment should begin, and I went on to receive three courses of R-CVP chemotherapy. Going to the first chemo session was the worst for me mentally, as I had read about all the possible side effects and thought it was going to be torturous! I actually coped with the treatment pretty well overall, but the worst part of it for me was the fatigue.

I was initially told that I would receive six courses of chemotherapy, but a scan halfway through treatment showed that the lymphoma had gone into remission. It stayed that way for 12 years until I had a relapse in 2020. The diagnosis followed a similar pattern to the first time round – finding a lump and being sent straight for a scan and a biopsy, before receiving the same course of chemotherapy treatment again.

Prior to the relapse, I had been training as part of the GB Wheelchair Rugby team for the 2020 Paralympic Games. Of course, owing to the COVID-19 pandemic they were postponed and as it turns out my treatment would have been right in the middle of the games if it wasn’t for the pandemic. So it felt good to be able to compete in the Paralympics in Tokyo a year later in 2021 after finishing treatment, and being told I was back in remission. In fact, our game against New Zealand was played a year to the date of starting my first treatment.

As I write this in August 2024, I am busy preparing for the Paralympic Games in Paris. It’s going to be pretty full on getting ready to fly out, heading to camp and then taking part, but I just want to be out there now. I am also enjoying being a dad to my daughter, Judy who my partner Emma and I welcomed earlier this year. We were absolutely delighted to find out we were going to become parents, as we wondered about the impact of my treatment when it came to starting a family and if it would ever be an option for us.

I am aware that due to the type of lymphoma I have been treated for in the past, that it could come back again. For me, the best way of coping with that is just knowing what I need to look out for, but trying not to think about it too much. When faced with my health challenges, I have just wanted to get on with treatment, get better and move on. In a way, I had no choice but to do what I had to do and come out the other side. The worst part of it all was seeing my friends and family upset.

I am really keen on raising awareness about lymphoma, as I certainly wasn’t aware that it was a type of cancer. I think there are probably lots of young people out there who haven’t heard of it, so talking about the condition so people know what to look out for is definitely something that’s important to me. 

Jack has shared his story with us as part of our Let's talk lymphoma awareness campaign, running throughout Blood Cancer Awareness Month in September. Find out more about how you can get involved in our campaign to raise awareness and funds to support our work.