Dad told he had higher chance of winning lottery than getting rare cancer at 31
A dad who was told he had a higher chance of winning the lottery than being diagnosed with a rare cancer is now living with the incurable disease.
Lee Penrose, 45, from Lancashire, was only 31 when he was told he had Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia (CLL), a slow-growing cancer that affects the blood and bone marrow, usually found in older people. He initially thought he was just generally unwell before he received the diagnosis.
He said: "It's not uncommon, but it's usually restricted to people later in life. For me to get it at my age when I was 31, apparently there was more chance of me winning the National Lottery. Unfortunately, I didn't buy a ticket that week so I got this instead."
In 2011, he was treated at The Christie Cancer Centre in Manchester and managed to raise funds for the hospital. He recovered with his wife, Steph, and their two young children, Mary and Abi by his side. In 2013, the couple canoed the length of the Caledonian Canal - a 60-mile stretch. Since then, he's been closely monitored every six months and has stayed healthy.
Lee has been supported by his wife Steph and daughters, Mary and Abi (Lee Penrose)However, the disease returned in 2021, this time more aggressive and needing specialist treatment, reports LancashireLive. Speaking about his treatment, he said: "I was quite ill again, but this time it was a different style of treatment. It meant I had to go into the hospital for three months and actually, at the time it was Covid.
Baby boy has spent his life in hospital as doctors are 'scared' to discharge him
"So it was literally locked down and I couldn't really have visitors much, which meant Steph and my two girls had to stand in the car park and wave through the window which was not much fun, but it was the only way we could see each other."
The father is hoping to raise money for The Christie by climbing Mount Kilimanjaro. He said: "What anyone going into The Christie experiences is that level of care that you get there is so different to a regional hospital. Most people would get their diagnosis at a hospital because that's where you go for your daily care."
He continued: "Then it's realised it's serious, you got to The Christie for treatment. When you enter that building and experience talking to the doctors, nurses, clinicians, technicians you see they really do know what they're doing, specific to these diseases." Lee added: "You feel really cared for and that you're really important to them, you're not just a number. They really do look after you and explain things so well."
Lee will be climbing Mount Kilimanjaro on February 3, just a day before World Cancer Day. His childhood friend Shaun Lister, a Commander in the Royal Navy, who grew up with Lee in Burnley, will join him. "We are very much looking forward to it. It's going to be a big challenge but the good thing about that particular mountain is that you don't need to be a mountaineer to go up there," Lee said. "You don't need any crampons, ice packs or anything like that. It's something that people with a good level of fitness and purpose can do."
He concluded: "It is tough, you do need to be dedicated but what better purpose than trying to raise funds for such a critical charity like The Christie." To donate to the fundraiser visit here.
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