A gym-going lad who 'pulled a muscle' while weight lifting was horrified when the sudden lump turned out to be a fist-sized cancer mass - but has battled through to get the all-clear. Tomas Evans said that two days after working out back in June he woke up to a painful apple-sized lump on his shoulder, which he thought was just from straining himself.
The 18-year-old visited the GP and after being referred for various scans, x-rays and a biopsy, was eventually diagnosed with stage two Hodgkin Lymphoma the following month. It's an uncommon cancer that mostly affects people between the ages of 20 and 40 that develops in the lymphatic system - a network of vessels and glands spread throughout the body.
The electrical installation student started chemotherapy in September and half way through his treatment received the good news that his scans are clear, and will finish his course in February. Tomas' doting mother, 38-year-old Rachael Tudor, said that it was 'heart-breaking' to watch him go through such an ordeal but that she's so proud of him and how he's coped.
The aspiring electrician is now keen to raise awareness of the importance of getting any potential symptoms of Hodgkin Lymphoma checked out.
Tomas, of Wrexham, said: "I thought that lump was just a gym injury. I went to the gym and two days later woke up with a big lump on my shoulder and it was causing me really bad pain. The lump was quite big and about the size of an apple.
"I thought it had just been a muscle that had come out of place or something and it wasn't, it was to do with the lymphoma. It [the diagnosis] is a weird moment to describe because it didn't really hit me straight away, it was kind of later on.
"When they first told me there was 'something there' it was a shock but when they said what it actually was, I kind of knew what it would be, I had a feeling."
The weight-lifting teen hurt his shoulder in the gym back in June and had it checked over by a GP who sent him for shoulder and chest x-rays, which led to a CT scan. Rachael said: "I just assumed that he had damaged something but when he received a letter through the post to go in to discuss his results I instantly knew something wasn't right.
"Getting the news your son has a mass the size of a fist in his chest is something no parent wants to hear, it was heartbreaking. He went straight for blood tests and a biopsy to see what exactly it was and we were faced with non Hodgkins Lymphoma or testicular cancer.
"We came home and cried for the whole two weeks waiting on the test results. It was the most horrendous two weeks of our lives as the crippling anxiety of what on earth we were facing was awful. When we got the diagnosis it was cancer and Hodgkin's lymphoma I knew I had to stay strong to get him and the family through this.
"We had (11-year-old daughter) Ava to think of also. We kept everything normal for the whole of the summer even though as soon as she went to bed, we just broke down. We eventually told her a few weeks before school started and Tomas started treatment so we could help her understand. She was amazing but the question of 'is he going to die?' from a ten-year-old will haunt me forever."
Tomas was diagnosed with stage two Hodgkin Lymphoma in July. He said that the mass in his chest caused the lump in his collarbone to appear and that other than that, he had no other symptoms.
It's believed that it formed at the beginning of the year so he'd caught it early. He started his chemotherapy in September and will have it every other week for six months, and will finish in February.
Hospital technician Rachael has set up a GoFundMe page to put some money towards a holiday for Tomas and his 19-year-old girlfriend Morgan Evans to celebrate him finishing treatment. They're also hoping to donate the rest to a charity supporting those fighting Lymphoma.
Tomas said: "The chemotherapy is going really well. My scan about five weeks ago came back clear but I've still got to do the treatment until the end of February just to make sure that it's gone everywhere. I had to take a year out of college and stop work and being able to go out places is a lot more difficult now because I'm at a high risk of infections.
"I get tired quite easily walking around places and just doing normal things, especially closer to when I've had the treatment as well. I've received the call clear but I've just got to finish chemotherapy just to make sure that it's gone everywhere.
"I'd tell others who have symptoms to go and get checked out because I didn't know, only that I hurt myself, otherwise I still wouldn't know."
Rachael added: "[Tomas' scan coming back clear] is just amazing news and has spurred us all on to get him through this treatment. It's come with its problems, obviously treatment is challenging and Tomas has ended up in hospital a few times poorly with neutropenic sepsis and the worry of him catching infections has been our primary concern this time of year. But thankfully he's on track and doing well. We are so proud of him and how he's coped."
You can donate to Tomas' GoFundMe page here.
