‘I needed to find a way forward’ – Survivor reflects after diagnosis for World Cancer Day

North Devon man, Andy Hood, reflects on his journey through testicular cancer, sharing the challenges of diagnosis, surgery, and recovery, and how he found the determination to rebuild his life.

February 4, World Cancer Day, offers a moment to pause and recognise the journeys travelled by people living with cancer, and by the families, friends and carers who walk beside them.

While diagnoses may share familiar names, breast, ovarian, prostate, testicular, and treatment pathways may overlap, no two journeys are ever the same. Each diagnosis is received differently, each treatment felt uniquely, and each story is deeply personal.

I was diagnosed with testicular cancer in 2021, after 48 years of never checking myself, an oversight that would prove significant. Discovering that one testicle had noticeably shrunk, I booked an appointment with my GP, carrying more nerves than I cared to admit. Yet, from the moment I walked through the door, I felt reassured.

My GP met me with calm, warmth and quiet confidence, making it clear I had done the right thing by reaching out. That tone stayed with me throughout my care. Sonographers, surgeons, oncologists and nursing teams across North Devon and Exeter consistently showed empathy, kindness and thoughtfulness, a reminder of the human connection at the heart of medicine.

The physical journey was a difficult one. Surgery brought pain and a long recovery, with discomfort lingering far longer than I expected. But alongside the physical toll came an equally challenging mental one.

Pain seeped into every movement, and the sudden removal from activities I loved, particularly running, left me grieving a version of myself I feared I might not return to. There was no clear sense of when, or if, I would lace up my running shoes again.

One moment stands out. Not long after my operation, my parents came to help with some light gardening. Walking just 20 steps from the back door into the garden proved too much.

Overwhelmed, I turned away as tears welled up and made my slow way back inside, wiping my cheeks as I went. In that quiet, private moment, I realised I needed to find a way forward. Chemotherapy still lay ahead, promising new challenges and new uncertainties.

Rebuilding with purpose became my way through. I chose to be open about my experience, to encourage men to be self-aware, to check themselves, to recognise symptoms and to reach out for help without shame. I wanted to stand alongside others navigating their own cancer journeys.

That sense of purpose gave me hope at my lowest points, helping me imagine a future I could move towards. In unexpected ways, it also opened doors that would never have existed without my diagnosis.

A year later, I found myself back on the South West Coast Path. This time, I was running from Westward Ho! to Land’s End, raising money for cancer and mental health charities. Rounding a corner one day, I met a young woman, late twenties, perhaps, who asked about the charity logos on my running top.

I shared my story. She shared hers: ovarian cancer in her early twenties. Tears followed, as two strangers stood together, united by experiences neither could have imagined just a few years earlier.

World Cancer Day is a moment like that. A moment to talk, to listen, to reflect and to support one another. And perhaps most importantly, it is a moment to reimagine what the future can hold, even after cancer.