From Electrical Engineer to Advocacy Hero: Graeme's Decade with Cancer

Graeme was diagnosed in 2013 and has been living with Stage IV EGFR+ lung cancer since 2017

I'm Graeme, and I'm 54 years old from Kilbarchan in Renfrewshire. I was originally an electrical engineer, but my journey with cancer has led me down a different path - one of advocacy and helping others.

When my cancer progressed to Stage IV EGFR+ in 2017, my world changed completely. I had surgery to remove part of my lung, followed by multiple rounds of chemotherapy and targeted treatments over the years. The extensive treatment gradually affected my quality of life and mobility over five years, but I've recently started a new targeted therapy that I'm responding well to.

My three children all play in local pipe bands - two play the bagpipes and one is a drummer. In my earlier years of treatment, I even took bagpipe lessons myself to try and help improve my lung stamina. It was a way to stay connected to something my kids loved while working on my own health.

For the last 10 months, I have been engaging with fitness and wellbeing programs in an attempt to help cope with my situation. I've also just started attempting to restore a modern classic sports car - a wee project I've embarked on to try and help my mental health and finally embrace adapting to being forced into medical retirement. I've been involved in patient advocacy and fundraising work since 2015, volunteering with Beatson Cancer Charity when I'm able to. It's not just about the patient - it's the impact on your family as well. My youngest was only 5 when I was first diagnosed, so he's grown up with this. Sometimes you've got to look beyond the patient to support partners, parents, and children.

"It helps normalise living with cancer. You can still go out and do fundraising events, go for walks and do activities as a family. It gives you the confidence to do so.’