3 days ago
Councillor from West Lothian who climbed Ben Nevis with broken back had incurable blood cancer
Myeloma occurs in the bone marrow but is frequently missed as symptoms are vague
A West Lothian councillor who climbed Ben Nevis with a broken back later discovered he had an incurable blood cancer.
In 2019, just weeks after climbing Scotland's highest mountain for the fourth time, Harry Cartmill was diagnosed with myeloma.
The Bathgate councillor, who was 53 at the time, is raising awareness of the condition in the run-up to Myeloma Awareness Week (June 16 to 22), to ensure more are patients diagnosed before it's too late.
Despite being the third most common type of blood cancer, myeloma is frequently missed, as its symptoms, including back pain, easily broken bones, fatigue and recurring infection, are vague and often linked to general ageing or minor conditions.
Harry said: 'I've had two stem cell transplants and there have been hard times but I'm still here six years later. Not only still here but still living life to the full.
'If something doesn't feel right, mention it. Get it checked. Less than two months before diagnosis I climbed Ben Nevis. I was an amateur athlete, so having a bit of pain didn't stop me. But my back was bothering me when I did it, I was really struggling on the way down.
"I used to walk up Ben Nevis like it didn't exist and I thought, 'It must be old age kicking in'. Of course it was nothing to do with that.'
Harry had climbed Scotland's highest peak with two broken vertebrae and had lost two inches in height as a result.
Myeloma occurs in the bone marrow and currently affects over 33,000 people in the UK, and more than 2,300 people in Scotland.
Harry is backing Myeloma UK's Know the Warning Signs campaign in which people with myeloma are featured with yellow warning signs painted on the area of their body where their symptoms first started.
Myeloma UK has also released a symptom translator to help conversations with GPs and make sure no patient falls through the net.
Initially, Harry put his sore back down to 'wear and tear' from years of playing golf and mountain climbing. Prescribed painkillers, he realises the shooting pain was unlike any he'd felt before and was in a different part of his back, which should have raised the alarm with his GP.
He said: 'I'd had great health my whole life. When you push yourself, climbing mountains, or cycling 100 miles and running half marathons, you're used to a bit of pain.
'I went to the doctor and he told me to take it easy, cut back on the golf, take painkillers. He said I was getting a bit older. But the pain progressively got worse. I think there needs to be an awareness there for some GPs. Not everybody with a pain in their spine has been overdoing it in the garden or playing too much golf.
'The last week-and-a-half before I was diagnosed, I was really struggling. I knew something was wrong. I knew it wasn't just Father Time catching up with me. But I never thought it could be myeloma.'
Another GP at his practice, realised something was wrong and sent Harry for an X-ray, which showed he had two broken vertebrae. He was quickly diagnosed with myeloma.
Harry continued: 'When they saw the broken bones, they asked me if I'd had some kind of trauma, if I had fallen off my bike. So that rang alarm bells. A day or two later they drilled into my hip and that's when the diagnosis of myeloma came. I used to be almost 6ft and now I'm just over 5ft 9in. My spine is not as straight as it once was.'
Harry started chemotherapy and later received a stem cell transplant.
'The treatment was incredibly hard,' Harry admits. 'I was a skeleton who could barely walk up the stairs.'
Unfortunately, Harry's cancer returned after just 18 months and he underwent chemotherapy again, followed by a second stem cell transplant. Two years on he is still in remission and determined to live a full life.
He attended his daughter's wedding in May and last year celebrated a year in remission and his dog's 12th birthday by climbing Tinto Hill.
'When you get a second chance, or a third chance as I was given, you have to make the best of every day with your family, your friends, your pets,' said Harry.
'I'm 60 at the start of next year and that would be a great milestone to reach, and I'm hoping that I can, because when I was diagnosed I didn't think I would get to that. I'm lucky to be alive.'
Dr Sophie Castell, Chief Executive at blood cancer charity Myeloma UK, said: We know that myeloma can be difficult to diagnose, so bring the Myeloma UK Symptom Translator with you to the GP, ask for answers and get to the bottom of what's causing your pain, infections or fatigue.'
Myeloma UK also run an Infoline, call 0800 980 3332.
