About me

My melanoma first popped up as a tiny multi-coloured mark on my right forearm in 2011. I had an immediate biopsy. 

In 2020, I found a lump under my arm. The cancer had metastasized into lymph nodes. I had surgery a week later.

Fourteen months later, after another CT scan, it had officially become a Stage 4 disease with tumours on my liver. I carried on working full time. I took mistletoe therapy. I had an immunotherapy drug for half a year but the tumours just grew.

The oncology team suggested a clinical trial of another immuno drug and two chemo pills each night. A barrage of side effects became the norm but I was initially grateful for the drug trial.

I use my juicer for a big glass of fruit and vegetables every morning. Vomiting usually happened later in the day. I cut down on processed food, sugar, dairy and meat. I haven’t drunk alcohol for about seven years.

The last CT scan during conventional treatment showed the tumours are still growing.

I then heard about a cell-based, personalised immunotherapy treatment where a cancer vaccine is made from my own blood cells.

In Dr Thomas Neßelhut’s clinic in Duderstadt, Germany, my cells are extracted, trained and multiplied to identify the specific cancer cells to my immune system.

Life expectancy from conventional treatments for metastatic melanoma is an average of five years. Dr Neßelhut stated that all of his melanoma patients are still alive. I don’t want to die quite so soon from cancer!

It is a tailored treatment based on the condition of each individual’s situation and, unfortunately, is not yet available in the UK. It is very effective for melanoma and prostate cancers, in particular.

See this link for more information.