An Ivybridge man who has testicular cancer  has organised a charity event to raise awareness of the condition amongst young men.

Martin Britain was diagnosed in May this year and describes what happened:

“It came as a massive shock for me and my family. I am a very fit and healthy individual who uses the gym four times per week. I eat healthy, don’t drink or smoke and walk my dogs for roughly an hour per day as well as being a very hands on and active dad to my two girls. I have a very active job as a fire fighter within the aviation industry, but even with all this it proves that cancer does not discriminate.

“My cancer journey started in March 2022 when I noticed a discrepancy between the size of my testicles but had no other common signs or symptoms. After building up the courage I booked an appointment to see my local GP. “My GP was concerned about the difference in size of my left to my right and arranged for me to attend an urgent ultrasound at Derriford Hospital. “Blood work was taken and I was asked to return to the chestnut unit to have a consultation with a specialist.“I was made aware that I had three small cysts on my left testicle which was the one I had least concerns about initially. I was informed that a biopsy was not an option as this can aggravate the potential cancer tumours and that my left testicle would have to be removed. “I was swiftly booked in for an operation which led me to be off work for eight weeks due to my role as an aviation firefighter. After the operation I waited four weeks for the biopsy results which I received on the May 4. “The oncology department confirmed that I did in fact have testicular cancer of the what was left testicle and discussed with me further treatment moving forward. “I was advised by the oncology specialist that it would be hugely beneficial for me to undergo a round of Carboplatin chemotherapy and was booked off for a further eight weeks. It was at this point I was introduced to the charity Dash Of Silver

“Dan silver started the charity after battling testicular cancer in 2009. The charity is based in Plymouth Devon and they aim to help young men through their testicular cancer journey, diagnosis, treatment and after care along with mental health support. They also work very hard to make more young men aware of the illness.“It was Dash Of Silver who through charity work donated the hospital the chemotherapy pack that was offered to me on my oncology consultation. At the time the pack provided meant the absolute world to me as it contained all the essentials to make my chemotherapy treatment experience as comfortable as possible. “It was touching that somebody that had been through the experience had identified a way to make the experience that little bit easier for newly diagnosed patients.  “These packs cost money to make and put together and it is for this reason that I am trying to raise as much awareness as well as money for Dash Of Silver so they can continue the fantastic work they are doing. The money raised will also help allow Dash Of Silver in their mission to continue to support young men through their testicular cancer journey, diagnosis, treatment and after care along with mental health support.“If the money we can raise goes towards somebody else feeling how I did that day in my initial chemotherapy consultation it will all be worth it.’

The event itself will take place from 4am on Saturday November 5 at Unit 8 Gym in Ivybridge. He and Jordon Anderton will be deadlifting their bodyweight (80kg) 2354 times (the amount of people diagnosed each year) between them equating to 1177 deadlifts each. They will be completing the deadlifts Every Minute On The Minute (EMOM) totalling 19 hours and 37 minutes.  They will then complete a 65 (the number of people who lose their lives a year) minute cardio session split between a tread mill and an exercise bike. They will both simultaneously complete a 32.5 minute run and switch to complete a 32.5 minute cycle. They should complete the challenge around 0.30am on Sunday November 6.  Local businesses have offered to take part and donate in order to raise more awareness and money to Dash of Silver. A GoFundMe page has been created for people who would like to donate to the charity and the title is ‘Cancers A Bench Deadlift Challenge 05.11.22’. The link is https://gofund.me/366cf321. We are encouraging as many people to attend the event and to donate as much or as little as possible with our aim being £1 for every case diagnosed and £1 for every death per year totalling £2419.