Retired veteran battling terminal prostate cancer undergoes fundraising cycle ride for charity

A terminally-ill father of four is cycling to raise money to fight cancer.

Retired colonel Richard Carrow, 70, was told he had up to four years to live when he was diagnosed with stage 4 prostate cancer last February.

Mr Carrow, who lost his mother and sister to cancer, began volunteering with Macmillan Cancer Support 10 years ago and is now helping the charity to raise awareness for early detection and improved treatment options.

Speaking about his challenge so far, he said: “The hardest part is the fact that I have no testosterone.

“The whole of my medication is aimed at reducing testosterone, which the cancer feeds on.”

He continued: “It helps that I was a soldier for 35 years. I'm used to an exercise regime.

“But when I was in the army I could do 35 press-ups. Maybe more. Now I struggle getting to 15.”

Mr Carrow first noticed symptoms when he began struggling to urinate in late 2023.

He recalled: “It became more obvious on Christmas Eve when I couldn’t pee.

“I went to the doctors and went back later in January when I started peeing blood. And again, they didn’t say, ‘this is a sign of prostate cancer’.

“My symptoms weren’t major. I might have had two or three pees when we were going for a walk and my wife said, ‘maybe you ought to get that checked out’. And I said, ‘no, it’s old age’.

“Now I’m getting up between five and six times a night.”

Mr Carrow eventually received an MRI scan, which confirmed his cancer was incurable, but treatable.

He has since had two doses of radiotherapy.

“At some point in the future, the cancer will come back,” he added.

“But in the meantime, I could be on these drugs for another eight years.”

And he believes earlier testing will help more men to detect cancer.

He continued: “It’s a difficult subject because even the medical profession doesn’t agree.

“But there's no question that had I been tested, had Chris Hoy been tested earlier, we wouldn’t necessarily have caught it at stage 4.”

READ MORE: Sir Chris Hoy teams up with Kiltwalk to raise funds for cancer charities

Mr Carrow is joined on his weekly bike rides by his wife Harriet.

The couple moved to the village of Adbury, near Newtown Common, in 1993.

They now cycle all over West Berkshire and North Hampshire together – sometimes more than 30 miles at a time.

Visit https://gofund.me/b8ffb240 to support their fundraiser.

One in eight men will get prostate cancer in their lifetime, according to Prostate Cancer UK.

Men are at higher risk if they are over 50, black, or if their father or brother has had the disease.

Visit www.nhs.uk/conditions/prostate-cancer/ to view the full symptoms and to get tested.