Edinburgh man with stage 4 cancer to take on marathon relay
"The main reason I want to take part in a Marathon is because I can. I'm stage four cancer. I've had it for 2 and a half years and cancer is a battle. So just running in the marathon is like, wow, I can do it. I can still do things."
Thousands of runners are set to tackle the Edinburgh Marathon this weekend.
They'll all have their own reasons for doing so, but Cameron Millar has a very special story.
"The main reason I want to take part in a Marathon is because I can. I'm stage four cancer. I've had it for 2 and a half years and cancer is a battle. So just running in the marathon is like, wow, I can do it. I can still do things." He told us.
Cameron will be running as part of the Balanced physiotherapy team in the relay, taking on the final 4.4 miles of the run.
They are raising cash for Maggie's Edinburgh.
Cameron was diagnosed with ALK+ non-smokers lung cancer in January 2020, he was further shocked when told it was stage 4 and had spread to his liver, kidney, spine, and brain.
The team at Balanced helped Cameron get his mobility back, he told us:
"I couldn't walk at one stage, or not walk very well - and they had just helped me kind of get my strength back up.
"So when they suggested the goal, the marathon, running the last leg of 4.4 miles, I thought, you know what, let's do it. Let's go
"When when you get bad news from from a doctor, it's like, Oh my God, you listen to the diagnosis and then you immediately jump to to worst case scenario of of what it all means.
"For me I don't know some of the modern medicines out there and the treatment I've had Western general from oncologist and all the clinical nurses Western general has been first class.
"Fantastic. Some of the best in the world and I've been put back together. It's like I'm still here I'm still surviving and still thriving. So yeah, take on the challenges."
Having never smoked, Cameron may have been surprised to have been diagnosed with lung cancer, but ever since he's been keen to raise awareness of ALK, which is caused by a defective gene that mutates causing an aggressive form of cancer.
There was no question for Cameron that if he was going to do this, he was going to do it to raise money for Maggie's.
He said:
"I think it's one of the best charities in the Edinburgh.
"It's absolutely fantastic what they do for cancer patients because the stress when you receive a diagnosis, the stress you're under, not just you, but your family members as well.
"And Maggie's, they're just there to support you, help you through these kind of early days and latter days as well of the journey of cancer. So it's a brilliant charity."