WHEN Will Wise started to feel hot and sweaty on the Tube on the way to work one morning, he assumed it was just the stress of the commute.
He had to be in the office in London for 8.30am, and he was “rushing” to make sure he made it on time.
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But the former professional basketball player, who was now working in recruitment, fell seriously ill before reaching his desk.
The then-30-year-old’s heart was racing and he started vomiting blood.
Eventually, he passed out and was rushed to hospital, where tests revealed he had incurable cancer.
“One in two people will get cancer, but I was oblivious to it before going through this,” Will said.
His life changed forever on November 28, 2022.
Will, originally from inner-city Philadelphia, US, and now lives in West London, said: “I had no symptoms at all. Being a former professional basketball player, I was pretty fit.
“I actually went for a run that morning then I took a shower and headed off to work.
“When I was on the Tube, I just started sweating profusely.
“I remember thinking, ‘What is going on? Maybe I just worked out too hard, it’s normal’.
“But I got this blazing headache, and I was still sweating as if I’d just played a game of basketball.
“But anyone who lives in London or has been there will know, the Underground is sticky and hot.”
Once Will got to work, he collapsed in the stairwell. He was weak, dazed and unable to walk.
Then, he started vomiting, and he couldn’t stop.
“I was throwing up and throwing up, and it was this colour that was green, but I hadn’t eaten anything green so my mind was blown,” he said.
Will managed to call his colleagues for help, and they rushed down to help him and phoned 999.
But before an ambulance could arrive, Will started to projectile “puddles of blood”.
He then took an Uber to the closest hospital and fell to the floor at the entrance.
“All my organs were failing,” Will, who is 6ft 9in and wears size 15 shoes, said. “[The paramedics] had never seen anything like it.
“My heart, my kidneys, my liver, my lungs – they were all failing simultaneously.”
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Will, who most recently played for the Eastern Mavericks in Australia, was put on a ventilator to keep him alive while medics raced to figure out what was wrong.
They eventually found a 3in (8cm) tumour on his left adrenal gland.
“It’s called a pheochromocytoma and that produces abnormal amounts of adrenaline, which is why all my organs shut down,” he said.
“On average, a human’s adrenaline ranges from zero to 1,000, but when I got sick mine was 50,000.”
Eight weeks later, Will was then told he had medullary thyroid cancer, which had spread so was stage four.
‘I JUST FROZE’
“I just froze in that moment – time stopped,” he said.
“I took a while for me to process what was going on.
“Once we started talking about scans and surgery, that’s when it got really real.”
Will underwent treatment, having surgery to remove his left adrenal gland, thyroid, parathyroid and 65 lymph nodes – as well as a liver biopsy.
He continues to be monitored, but he knows he will never be cured.
Stage four cancer means the disease has spread from where it started to another organ.
It isn’t usually curable, but treatment can improve survival and quality of life.
It’s no longer about fighting or battling cancer, it’s about surviving cancer
Will Wise
Will, who now works as a coach and community coordinator for the Richmond Knights, set up his own social media movement and charity, CancerBae, to help others going through the same experience.
“I’m on a mission to change the stigma associated with cancer,” he said.
“It’s no longer about fighting or battling cancer, it’s about surviving cancer.
“For stage four people like me living with cancer, it’s our only choice.
“It was a shock and scary, but just because I got diagnosed with stage four cancer, I just don’t stop being Will.”
The sportsman, who was adopted aged 14, lives with his Australian fiancée, Alex Hosking.
The 28-year-old said their goal is to remain as upbeat as possible about life.
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“For us, this isn’t about fighting cancer or even surviving it – it’s about living with it,” she said.
Alex, a singer-songwriter, admitted that following Will’s diagnosis, there were lots of tears.
But, once they got over the initial shock, they were able to look beyond it and see there was so much more life to be enjoyed.
“It was a shock and scary, especially at such a young age when you’re feeling invincible,” she said.
“But even with words like ‘cancer’ and ‘stage four,’ you realise you just have to keep moving.
“Although it’s difficult, we try to stay positive and upbeat.”
Will, who is also on TikTok, shared his story to support Cancer Research UK’s life-saving research.
He was guest of honour and started at the charity’s Race for Life event in Battersea.
What is medullary thyroid cancer?
There are many different types of thyroid cancer.
Most start in the follicular cells, but a small number start in the C cells. These are called medullary thyroid cancers.
This type of cancer is rare. About a quarter of cases are caused by an inherited faulty gene which runs in the family.
Medullary thyroid cancer can spread to other parts of the body, such as the liver or lungs.
The most common symptom is a mass or lump in the neck, which may be painful.
But people can also experience difficulty swallowing, problems breathing, a hoarse voice, pressure or discomfort in the neck, a red face, diarrhoea and weight loss.
Source: Cancer Research UK
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