A British dad who has an incurable case of cancer has revealed his determination to walk his daughter down the aisle.
When Jason Walker began experiencing persistent back pain and double vision, he simply put it down to signs of ageing.
But as his symptoms worsened, he knew something grave was going on – and so sought out medical advice.
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It turns out the now 57-year-old had stage three multiple myeloma, a type of blood cancer, which was terminal.
He underwent a course of chemotherapy, but his case was still deemed incurable.
It was a waiting game for him and his loved ones to see how many years he would have left.
And, sadly, after spending five years in remission, several spongy lumps were spotted on his head a few months ago.
Now, it’s unclear how long he has left – and whether he will get to walk his daughter, Abbey, 28, down the aisle as they both dreamed.
“I need to get through this, as I’m giving her away,” the painting business owner, from Lancashire, told Need To Know.
“I want to be well enough to walk my beautiful daughter down the aisle.
“It’s every father’s dream to give their little girl away.
“And for her to be happy and settled with the man she loves.
“I can’t wait for that moment to see her in her wedding dress – it will be emotional.
“I try to keep a positive attitude and laugh about cancer.
“But I do sometimes get mad and swear at it.
“Cancer doesn’t care, though.
“And neither do I – it won’t get to me.”
Jason’s initial diagnosis was in February 2014.
It was found that the cancer had infested his entire body, which was causing chronic bone pain, particularly around the pelvic region.
It was also found in his pituitary gland, where it was pulling on his optic nerve.
He said: “It was a huge shock.
“One minute I was working, playing squash and getting on with family life.
“And the next I was being told I had terminal cancer.
“I thought I had gotten through the hardest part [after chemotherapy], but then two days after completing treatment, I had a heart attack.
“It was caused by a blood clot due to chemotherapy.
“It was frightening, but, thankfully, I recovered.”
Following this, Jason had two successful stem cell transplants and got back to his ‘old’ life, playing squash and spending time with his family.
But in November 2025, that’s when the aforementioned lumps were spotted.
Sadly, tests confirmed he had relapsed.
He tried a three-drug combination, but his body was unable to tolerate it, to the point where he could no longer go up the stairs.
Jason was referred to The Christie in Manchester, where he became the first patient to take part in the TOPICAL clinical trial.
It involves an anti-inflammatory drug which can reduce the severe side effects associated with a new form of immunotherapy treatment, such as high fever, dangerously low blood pressure and breathing difficulties.
In some cases, the effects can be life-threatening.
Jason believes he’ll be on the drug forever – or until it stops working – and is currently only a few weeks into treatment.
Although he has a long way to go, the results so far have been promising.
It’s hoped that if all goes well, he will get to live out his dream of walking Abbey down the aisle in Montenegro in May 2027.
He added: “I feel very lucky to be on the trial at The Christie.
“I hope it works, not just for myself, but for the wider myeloma warriors out there.
“Any hope in a difficult situation is good.
“It’s like I’ve won something better than the lottery.
“I’m not only confident I’ll walk Abbey down the aisle next May, but I think I’ll be around for at least another 10 years.”
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