North Yorkshire family 'delighted' son with incurable blood cancer is given more years to live
Pete McCleave was diagnosed with myeloma
Last updated 25th Mar 2024
A family in North Yorkshire say they are delighted their son with an incurable blood cancer has been given more years to live.
Six years ago June and Mike McCleave from Sleights near Whitby were told Pete has myeloma with a seven-year lifespan.
They have been fundraising ever since for Newcastle University to kickstart research into finding a cure and they have hit their £50,000 target.
June and Mike are in Swainby today in Teesside to continue raising awareness and fundraising.
Mike said: "We never thought that we would achieve this so soon. People have been so generous all over the country and abroad sending in donations and of course, a lot of people who send in donations have a family member affected by myeloma."
June said: "They did give Pete seven years to live and the Christie Hospital in Manchester have said because of what's happened over the last six years with drugs and the development, Pete now can hope for another five years at least which is amazing news because this gives us time to find a cure.
"He's in a very good place. He's doing very well and the chemotherapy that he's having is working. He does occasionally have injections for his bone strength because of course myeloma hits the bone and skeleton. He's doing extremely well and he's continuing with his DKMS work.
"It's a real motivator; with a diagnosis like this I think what you do is you sink or swim and a lot of people can't cope with it and for a time, we certainly couldnt' cope with it. It's a terrible thing to be told that your son's got seven years to live with an incurable disease.
"In a way it kickstarts you as well because you think you either accept it or you don't. We haven't accepted it as a family and we've all been really proactive to try and do something to turn it around for all of thousands of people who are suffering with blood cancer.
"With the seven year prediction that we were given, it was actually a gift. I mean how many people have two weeks? Six months? I mean I've lost friends who've been gone in six months and so seven years gives you time to get a plan together doesn't it?"
You can listen to the full interview with June and Mike McCleave below, who spoke to TFM's Karen Liu
For more information visit the 'Save Pete' Facebook page.
June has also been writing and selling books with 100 percent of proceedings going to Newcastle University to fund the research.
They are called 'Just a Village Kid and Other Ramblings' which is an autobiographical about growing up in the 1950's in Great Broughton and 'The Adventures of Pandora Pettigrew Puss Wuss' which is a pampered Persian cat who lives with her Mummy Mrs. Pomeroy Pilkington Puce in The Magical Moorland Manor in Groatland. She is very bored and seeks adventure in Whitby. The next book should be published soon.