Dad diagnosed with 'incurable' cancer after mistaking symptoms for stress
A father who was diagnosed with an 'incurable' form of cancer initially ignored his symptoms after putting it down to stress.
Dale Atkinson of Peak Health and Fitness was diagnosed with oesophageal adenocarcinoma in October 2024 and the Brit was told the disease was far too advanced for surgery and that he could not be cured.
According to the NHS, oesophageal cancer 'is a cancer that's found anywhere in the oesophagus, sometimes called the gullet or food pipe'. It's a variation of the disease that's often diagnosed late.
Dale had ignored many symptoms for a while, putting it down to his hectic lifestyle and stress bringing up two young children with his partner Ana.
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But underneath it all, something was seriously wrong.
"For years, I had always suffered with heartburn and acid reflux, which I put down to stress and working long hours," he explained.
"Looking back, the warning signs had been there much longer than I realised. As far back as 2019, I had been going to my GP with acid reflux, acid rising during sleep, burning in my throat and nose, and stomach cramps. I was prescribed omeprazole and reassured.
"When things worsened, I was made to feel like I was wasting NHS time, so I stopped pushing as hard as I should have.
"By 2023 and into 2024, the symptom had become more serious. I started to experience pain after eating, swallowing felt strange, as if food wasn’t going down properly, and I lost a significant amount of weight."
While Dale's wife had her own battle with lung cancer, the Brit was determined to fight back despite his prognosis.
He added: "I started researching everything about my cancer, sought second opinions, built a team around me in November 2024, and had advanced genomic testing done to understand fully what was driving my tumour and which treatments might work best.
"For the first time, I felt like I had a map instead of a diagnosis. One of the earliest useful results from that testing was chemo sensitivity analysis, and it came back in time to help guide my treatment decision."
Dale continued: "Until then, I had seriously considered declining chemotherapy. I had been told it might only buy me a few extra months at best, and I was weighing that against the possible impact on my quality of life.
"But based on those results, and after discussions with my team about likely effectiveness, I decided to go ahead with CAPOX chemotherapy and pembrolizumab immunotherapy as part of my treatment plan, starting in December 2024."
While Dale may have been told his cancer is 'incurable', his revealed that recent scans have 'shown major progress' with his health.
"There has been major regression in metastatic disease and my primary tumour has shrunk significantly from its largest recorded size," Dale added.
"It’s not remission yet, but it is real progress."
Callum Jones