Paul McConnell

In 1999 Paul, a detective constable then aged 35 had not long celebrated his second wedding anniversary to wife Emma. He was always careful about checking himself, so when he noticed a small lump on his testicle while in the bath one evening, he know that it hadn't been there long.

Paul went to his doctors the next day an was relieved to be told that there was no need to worry, that the lump would disappear of its own accord. But over the course of the next few weeks Paul began to feel ill, he explains:

'I felt so tired all the time, I found myself having to pull over when I was driving home and I had really bad dark circles under my eyes. I was so worried, I went back to the doctor and this time asked him outright if I might have cancer.'

Again Paul was told not to worry and that the lump was probably a cyst, but three months after first noticing the lump, Paul awoke to find his testicle very sore and swollen. He went straight to the GP surgery, and fortunately was seen by a doctor who was an expert in urology. This time he was sent straight to hospital for tests which confirmed that Paul had testicular cancer which although slow growing, had been with him for some time and he urgently needed surgery to remove it.

Two days later Paul was in the operating theatre having the affected testicle removed. Fortunately the cancer had been caught in time and Paul didn't need any chemotherapy. Six months later he was back at work, and in 2002 he was given the all clear. In September 2001 Paul, his brother and four colleagues from the Metropolitan Police cycled from Land End to John O'Groats to raise funds for Everyman.

Paul explains, "Although my cancer took some time to be diagnosed, I was extremely lucky. The specialist told me another month without treatment could have meant a very different scenario for me. I'm lucky and I felt that I wanted to give something back and support the scientists who are working to find out the causes of testicular cancer."

"My advice now to all men is to regularly check themselves and if they feel that something isn't right down there to get it checked out and be persistent. The earlier you get treatment the better, over 96% of cases of testicular cancer can be cured when caught early enough, like me, not all cases require chemotherapy. The bottom line is don't die of ignorance."

Paul and Emma feel that their experience of cancer has made them stronger as a couple and focus on staying healthy and happy, even more so since the birth of their first child, Holly, last year.