Pete Webster was blindsided by a phone call. “I’d just finished teaching a circuits class at the gym where I work, and was heading for a shower, when my phone rang.
“When the doctor said the words ‘malignant tumour in your left kidney’, I had to ask him to repeat himself several times. I was so shocked I just couldn’t take it in,” says Pete, 50, a personal trainer from Greenwich, South East London.
Despite several weeks of intensive, and at times invasive, tests, it had simply never crossed Pete’s mind that the outcome would be a cancer diagnosis.
“I suppose, until that moment, I’d always believed cancer was something that happened to other people, not someone like me. I’d thought I was indestructible.
“I noticed that when I began to tell people about my diagnosis, the overwhelming reaction was how could someone like me – active, fit, leading a very healthy lifestyle – have this disease? I think it scared people, because they thought, ‘if it can happen to him, it can happen to anyone’.”
The solitary, and one-off, symptom of Pete’s kidney cancer (also known as renal cancer) was thick, red blood in his urine one morning in late June 2023.
“My wife Holly, 47, happened to be in the bathroom at the same time and insisted I call the GP immediately.
“Had she not done that, I don’t think I would’ve completely dismissed it, but I probably would have delayed getting it checked out, which could have had very serious consequences,” says Pete.
In July, Pete’s GP took bloods, before referring him to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich, for tests which included an ultrasound, a CT scan and a cystoscopy, where a camera is inserted into the urethra under local anaesthetic.
“Even then, cancer wasn’t on my radar,” says Pete. “I felt completely normal, hadn’t passed blood again and thought it would end up being something innocuous.”
After receiving the shocking news he had stage two kidney cancer – the fifth most common cancer in men in the UK – Pete had to tell Holly and their son, Ethan, now 11.
“I knew I was about to turn their world upside down, it was a terrible feeling. Holly was devastated. I just remember shrugging helplessly, lost for words. I couldn’t actually believe I was having to tell her this.“We just told Ethan that I had a poorly kidney and would need treatment. I could see the worry in his eyes and felt so guilty. A child shouldn’t worry about their dad.”
In mid-August, Pete underwent surgery at Guy’s Hospital, London, to have his kidney removed.
“My surgeon assured me I could lead a normal life with just one, which was a relief. Whether or not I would need chemotherapy depended on if the cancer had remained contained to the kidney, or not.”
He spent three nights in hospital after his surgery, before he was discharged.
“I was very weak, tired and sore, and for someone as fit and active as me, that was really hard. But I was determined to get back to normal as quickly as possible, and as soon as I was able to, I’d be out for short walks with our dog Buddy, a border collie, to build up my strength and stamina,” says Pete.
“Gradually the walks got longer, my body grew stronger and I felt more like me. My PT mindset definitely helped and since then I’ve cut out salt from my diet and no longer drink alcohol, to help my remaining kidney function as well as possible.
Fortunately, despite the surgeon describing the tumour as “large and angry”, Pete’s cancer hadn’t spread beyond his kidney, and no further treatment was required, other than regular CT scans.
However, he was still reeling emotionally from what he’d been through and seven months on from his diagnosis, says he’s still processing it.
“Life after cancer is like waking up in a parallel universe. Everything and everyone looks the same, but I am different. I know now nobody is invincible, cancer can touch anyone. I’ve been changed by what I’ve been through,” says Pete.
“I’m still having counselling, which is helping me to look forward not dwell on what happened, and getting back to work is a great distraction too.”
Seeking out positivity after such a difficult time, Pete has set out on a year of fundraising for good causes including Guy’s Cancer Charity.
He’s undertaking a different challenge for every month of 2024, including shaving his head and running a half marathon.
“I turned 50 last week and when you’ve been confronted with your own mortality, milestone birthdays take on a different significance. I wanted to do something meaningful, not just throw a party.”
The recent news of King Charles’ cancer diagnosis inevitably resonates deeply with Pete.
“I know what it’s like to receive the news this disease is in your body, and experience the uncertainty of what lies ahead. That really shakes you to your core,” he says.
“I realised after my diagnosis, how little my male friends and I talk about our health com- pared to my wife and her friends.
“I hope that the King’s decision to be so open about his health will encourage men to seek help if they have any symptoms.