Telford man in cancer drug trials

Tony Norris who is taking part in cancer drug trials

Tony Norris from Telford went to his doctor with flu-like symptoms but was told he had cancer.

Doctors said he had non-Hodgkins lymphoma and had only 18 months to live.

He is now taking part in the second phase of trials of a new drug which he hopes will extend his life.

He said the drug, 'ofatumumab' had been successful in treating other forms of cancer and he was hoping for good results in his case.

He said he had heard of a woman who was 20 years older than him who had the same form of the disease as he has and she had been helped by the drug: "I'm 20 years younger and maybe a little bit fitter and stronger, so there could be some hope. If there's some hope you've got to go for it."

Tony said if felt strange to be a guinea pig but if it did not help him, maybe it could help someone else.

Stay positive

Having cancer and being told he did not have long to live has made Tony look at his relationships differently and he has recently proposed to his girlfriend: "We're actually getting married in two weeks time, so we brought everything forward. We've done things very quickly."

He said he was determined to fight the disease: "I think if you are very positive and keep very strong, keep very active and look for things to do rather than sit at home and worry about these things."