A WINCHESTER oncologist is training to run in the Race for Life, to raise money Cancer Research

As a teenager, Dr Hugo De La Pena was told he had incurable cancer and lived for months in his home country of Mexico thinking he and his parents were about to undertake the biggest challenge of their lives.

At 13-years-old, he was told he had a type of poor prognosis cancer called lymphoma.

But as Hugo was about to begin chemo and after almost having his spleen surgically removed, an eleventh-hour pathology review revealed he had been misdiagnosed. He in fact had Kikuchi’s syndrome, which mimics lymphoma in its entirety apart from the fact is not malignant.

Dr De La Pena, who now lives on the outskirts of Winchester said: “Being told I didn’t have cancer was without a shadow of a doubt, one of the best days of my life. Not so much for me but for my family because I could see what an impact the ‘cancer diagnosis’ had had on everybody around me.

“I decided then, I was going to study medicine as a means to and end: to cure cancer.”

The consultant now treats breast cancer patients from across the Wessex region and thanks to research, he is able to use the latest treatments available to increase cure cancer rates. When the cancer cannot be cured, his goal is to extend survival for as long as possible with the best quality of life, aiming for cancer to become a chronic disease rather than a life-limiting one.

He is encouraging Winchester to take part in the city’s 3k and 5k Race for Life events on Sunday May 22 at North Walls Recreation Ground and will be launching the Southampton event on Saturday July 23.

Dr De La Pena said: “Because of research, we doctors are in a great and unique position now to treat patients because we have so many options. It used to be the case that new drugs came around and changed clinical practice every ten years, but now, the standard of care and clinical practice changes almost every two years.

“We have lots of cancer kryptonite, but we need more.”

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Every year around 3,600 people are diagnosed with cancer in Winchester and one in two people in the UK born after 1960 will get cancer in their lifetime.  Money raised at Race for Life enables scientists to find new ways to prevent, diagnose and treat cancer - helping Dr De La Pena to save more lives. 

He hopes his work in the city will inspire people to keep raising funds and said: “The statistics that tell us one in two will get cancer are shocking, but with research and clinical trials, we can cure more and more cancers. We cure cancer most days, but that’s not good enough, we need to cure cancer every day”.

Elisa Mitchell, spokesperson for Cancer Research UK in Hampshire said: “We are really grateful that Dr De La Pena has agreed to not only take part in Race for Life but will be launching it too.

“We are delighted that in the year Cancer Research UK celebrates 20 years of making discoveries, driving progress and bringing hope, Dr De La Pena can share exactly how the funds our runners have worked so hard to raise, are helping the patients he treats on a daily basis. I’m sure it will help to spur them on to complete the last stretch of the 5k. 

“The events are open to all. For some people, the Race for Life is literally a walk in the park. Slow and steady still wins. For others, it’s a jog. Others may opt to push themselves harder, reaching for a new personal best time.  

“We’re looking forward to welcoming people of all ages and abilities. Race for Life in Winchester and Southampton will be fun, emotional, colourful, uplifting and an unforgettable event this year.” 

Message from the editor Kimberley Barber

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