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Last year, we were floored with the diagnosis that I (Jeremy) had advanced, aggressive and incurable prostate cancer at age 44. Emma was 7, Oliver was 2, we were working hard towards future plans and dreams. Anna had already been impacted by prostate cancer, in that her dad was diagnosed with it in 2018, partly triggering our return to the UK, but it was caught relatively early through a routine PSA test and was curable.

If caught early, prostate cancer can be cured. There is currently no national screening for prostate cancer, although the guidance is to seek a PSA test if you are over 45, have a family history of prostate cancer or are black – we would urge you to do so (even from 40). In any event, better screening tools need to be found.

Unfortunately, at stage 4, prostate cancer cannot currently be cured. The statistics suggest that we will lose the decades that we want most. There is no bucket list that can rush us through Emma and Oliver's lives or put me beside Anna for a retirement sunset. But medical technology is improving all of the time and while there are hopes for a cure in our lifetime (ideally within mine!), there are also increasing options to manage this as a chronic condition until that cure comes about. We want to do everything we can to raise some money to push on that vital research that is being undertaken at the moment.

Last year, I responded as well as could realistically have been hoped to conventional treatment, to the point where I was pumped to begin a phased return to work, hoping that a stable period was achievable through hormone treatment for a while. Unfortunately, the cancer had other plans. So here we go again, radiotherapy and perhaps a period of whack-a-mole treatment may avoid the need for more systemic treatment in the short term.

The reality is that facing stage 4 is a marathon, not a sprint.

Fortunately, the London marathon has always been on my bucket list.

It wasn't on Anna's. She's never run more than 10k. And that was in 2014, pre-two children. But she does love me. So, she's agreed to run alongside me in the London Marathon - a memory for a lifetime.

Past joint endeavours of this nature may have been testing on the Snead marriage. Now, Emma plots training plans around cycling ahead with Mummy's phone and Daddy's favourite cap, while Oliver offers a form of sprint training that suggests he doesn't understand what a mile is, let alone 26 of them. But we have been a team since 2009 and have survived worked alongside each other (in 3 different law firms) for 17 years – including 9 months of working together in a spare bedroom during COVID. Don't bet against Team Snead...

We're so grateful for all of the donations made last year to support my cycling endeavours that we do feel bad asking for even more. But around 13,000 men die from prostate cancer in the UK alone. Many could have been saved if they were caught earlier or if tomorrow's technology was available today.

Over our 16 week training schedule, the stark reality is that 3,696 men (in the UK alone) will die from prostate cancer. Your mates, granddads, brothers, uncles, sons, husbands, cousins or boyfriends. If we can raise a pound for each of those men, that would feel amazing. We don't need motivation for the exercise (well, it might help Anna's motivation which began to waver with the schedule on week 2….), but we will continue to try to help and raise awareness so long as we can. This will include a series of other events throughout 2026.

We've been overwhelmed with the love and support we've received over the last year. We're hoping that even if you can't or don't want to donate (and we do appreciate that there are so many worthy causes out there), you'll continue to send us words of support. And for those within reach of London, we'd love nothing more than you coming out to support us on that day. That will definitely help our motivation and get Anna through it. It will also make a massive difference knowing that we'll have friendly faces cheering us along the way, so if you'll be watching the London marathon, please do reach out and let us know!

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