My Training Diary

Tues 3rd Jan 2023

In 14 short weeks I will travel to Perth Australia to represent Team GBNI across 4 cycling events at the World Transplant Games. I will be taking part in the 10km individual Time Trial, 20km Team Time trial and the 30km Road race on the Wanneroo Raceway - Perth Australia. I will also be competing in the Triathlon Relay bike leg.

One of the largest teams in the world will be representing Great Britain and Northern Ireland at the World Transplant Games 15 – 21st April 2023.

The seven-day program of high exertion and low impact sports, along with many social and cultural events, caters to both elite and social athletes and attracts 2500 participants from over 60 nations. Our team has 150 transplant athletes, we have been selected following our success at this year’s Westfield Health British Transplant Games which took place in Leeds and/or the European Transplant Games, hosted in Oxford. Athletes have all survived a heart, lung, kidney, pancreas, liver, small bowel, or bone marrow transplant, and come from all parts of the GB & NI.

I am living with Multiple Myeloma and have undergone many radiotherapy sessions, chemotherapies and 2 Stem Cell (bone marrow) transplants since 2018 and thankfully in Remission. Cycling has been my mental medicine and a huge part of my recovery. Heading to the World Transplant Games is still an enormous commitment of both time and money. The next 3 months will be busy for all us athletes as well as trying to raise the £3-4,000 per person to get there. However, the opportunity to compete, celebrate life and pay tribute to our donors, is the goal.

A bit of background on me and my cycling; I am one of 3 Northern Ireland athletes heading to the games. I had great success at the British Transplant Games in Leeds back in July of this year. I won Gold in both the individual time trial and road race and thus secured a spot to represent at the Worlds.

I was told by my consultants back in 2018 to stop cycling due to the risk factors and complications of having blood cancer and specifically myeloma which impacts the integrity of the bones. I had been cycling for 7-8 years and did some local amateur racing across Ulster in various disciplines (road, TT, CX and MTB). But after the diagnosis I sold up everything, my road bike and time trial bike and bought a tacx smart bike so I could at least cycle indoors. When covid struck I started a small virtual club. What started out as 4-5 lads riding their bikes in the shed or garage on their turbos has turned into Ireland’s biggest virtual cycling club/community (world’s 9th). “Team Racing Without Borders” (RWB- https://www.facebook.com/RWBcycling).

This gave me a huge focus on my recovery from cancer treatment, also hearing so many stories from the community and how cycling has saved them from a multitude of reasons stemming from physical and mental recovery. This gave me a huge purpose in getting my fitness back to a racing level, I am still raising the bar on my journey back to an amateur racing level.

This journey is also only possible thanks to the amazing Healthcare staff at the NHS Western Trust and Belfast Trust who have been treating me since 2018. So far I have been through:

• 5 weeks of Radiotherapy (40gy)
  
• Cancer Progression
• 6 months of Chemotherapy (VTD - Velcade/Thalidomide/Dexamethasone)
• Cancer Progression / Refractory to Chemotherapy drugs
• 3 Months Chemotherapy (RD-PACE - Revlimid/Dexamethasone - Cisplatin/Adriamycin/Cyclophosphamide/Etoposide)
• 1 Autologous (My own cells) Bone Marrow / Stem Cell Transplant (Melphalan)
• 4 months Chemotherapy (Revlimid/Dexamethasone)
• 1 Allogeneic (My brother Damian's cells) Bone Marrow / Stem Cell Transplant (low dose Melphalan)
• 7 months remission
• Cancer back another Relapse
• 8 months Chemotherapy (Revlimid)
• 1 week of Radiotherapy (20gy)
• 4 Donor Lymphocyte (T-Cells) infusions
  

At the time of writing I am in Remission again.

Along the way I have had amazing support from the staff at both trusts, specifically the staff in Ward 50 and the Sperrin Unit in Derry and staff in the Bridgewater suite and 10 North in Belfast. I have to give a special mention to Dr Adam Waterworth who made me aware of the transplant games after my allogeneic stem cell transplant in 2020, he saw how cycling was helping me both mentally and physically and put me in contact with Transplant Northern Ireland. It had taken 2 years to get to Leeds and the British Transplant games in July 2022 through my health recovery and Covid but I was so luck to be able to take part / race and win the Games.

I have also had huge help from the Friends of the Cancer Centre, the charity funds life-saving and life-changing projects that make a real and lasting difference to the lives of thousands of local people affected by cancer. The charity’s work continues to make a real difference to local people. This year the FOTCC nurses provided 800 hours of additional care to patients and families; provided 25,000 cups of free tea and coffee for patients as they wait on appointments; financial grants supported over 200 people and much, much more.

Most importantly, I wouldn't be here even contemplating this without the support from my entire family especially my amazing wife Lisa and my amazing Son Aedan. They have been with me every step of the way, every agonising appointment, test result, set back but also in celebration of the good news. They give me reason to keep on keeping on.

Please Donate and Ride on