Cancer checks 'so important'

ROYAL MARINE VET SAYS 'GET CHECKED'

- MAXINE DENTON

A PLYMOUTH dad with bowel cancer is hoping to raise £10,000 to pay for holistic treatments to help him reach remission. Mark Fricker, 44, also wants to raise more awareness around the disease to encourage people to speak up and detect cancer early.

In September 2021, the Royal Marine veteran, who completed operational tours of Afghanistan and Iraq, went to his doctor with complaints of abdominal cramps. At the time, he was told he had irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) but when his symptoms continued for months afterwards, he was referred for a CT scan and later, a colonoscopy.

Mark was diagnosed with stage 4 bowel cancer in January 2022 and was told that while it was treatable, it had spread to his liver and lungs. “I almost fell to the floor when I was told,” he said. “As soon as you hear it’s stage 4, you think it’s a death sentence.