A Belfast man who has been diagnosed with stage four spinal cancer says that he hopes to be "fast and tumorous" as he prepares to take on a half marathon in a wheelchair later this year.
Last November Matthew Starkey was playing seven-a-side when he felt like he was limping in his right leg and thought that he may have hurt it somehow or pulled a muscle. Over the following day he then noticed he had raised and swollen veins and discolouration on his foot and went to hospital believing he had deep vein thrombosis.
He went to hospital and following tests it was deemed that nothing was wrong with him, however the pain continued in his leg and Matthew contacted a vascular consultant privately. This doctor told him he had a collapsed valve at the top of his leg and he paid to have an operation to repair this, which Matthew was told was successful.
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In the following weeks Matthew noticed a big improvement in his condition, however at Christmas he began to feel the pain return to his legs which became tight and sore.
Over the next month the pain continued to get worse and in February Matthew was out for a walk with his fiancé when he found that he was struggling a lot and needed help to walk up a small hill, despite climbing cave hill a week prior. Then a few days later he fell over while buying flowers for Valentine's Day and he rang his GP who arranged an appointment for him to get an emergency MRI.
After this test Matthew was brought into a side room with his mum and fiancé and received the devastating news that they had found a 3cm tumour on and through his spinal cord which would require urgent surgery. This news was very tough for Matthew to take who said that he had spent the past year "doing everything right" with regards to his health.
He was then scheduled for a very risky surgery to remove the tumour and warned that he may not make it through it. However it also proved to be very successful, but as part of the tumour ran through his spinal cord, it had to stay in place. Matthew, who had been wheelchair bound at the time due to the pain in his legs, found that one day after the operation he was able to walk again.
While Matthew had been at the hospital, he underwent a job interview from his hospital bed with St Colman's High and Sixth Form College in Ballynahinch, where he had been working for the past three years on a temporary basis and managed to secure a permanent teaching role. He says that getting his dream job on the same day he was told he had cancer was a very bittersweet moment.
He took the opportunity to propose to his girlfriend Carrie in March following the diagnosis, although this was something that he had been planning to do anyway, but on the night of his engagement the pain in his legs began to return and the following morning he found it very difficult to walk.
Matthew feared the worst and thought that his tumour had grown back in just three weeks and was heartbroken to have this confirmed following another MRI.
He has now been admitted back into Hospital and is undergoing radiotherapy and chemotherapy.
Speaking to Belfast Live, Matthew said that while the past few months have been very difficult for him and his family, he is determined to stay positive and keep an open mind about his future.
He is now planning on taking part in the Belfast Half Marathon in a wheelchair in order to raise money for cancer charities and launched a Instagram Page 'Fast & Tumourous' in order to help people follow his journey in the coming months.
He said: "It feels very unfair to be told that I have stage four cancer after doing my best over the years to live healthy and things had been going well in my life up to that point, having bought a house with my fiancé, got my dream car and am working in a job that I love.
"My life has been completely changed and while it is very hard for me to process what the future holds, I am doing my best to keep a positive mindset and look towards the future regardless.
"While my diagnosis is not good, I won't let the prognosis get in the way of me living my life and doing my best to prove it wrong. I have such an amazing support network around me with my family, my fiancé Carrie and her family and my friends and it is very reassuring to know that they will always be there for me through the difficult times.
"I have also set myself the goal of taking part in the Belfast Half Marathon in a wheelchair later this year and set up a Instagram page 'Fast and Tumorous' so that people can follow my journey. I know the page's name is a bit close to the bone but I want to stay as upbeat and positive as possible about things and I hope it can give people a laugh.
"The response I have had so far has been amazing and I am hoping that I can raise £100,000 over the coming months for cancer charities and do my best to give them as much support as possible."
If you would like to follow Matthew's journey you can do so via his Instagram page.
If you would like to donate to his fundraising appeal for the cancer charities you can do so via his Gofundme and Justgiving pages.
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