I knew I should start worrying when my pee looked like Ribena

I found out I had a 6cm tumour on my right kidney (Picture: Umesh Patel)

The urologist looked me in the eye and uttered: ‘We’ve found something on your kidney that’s going to need treatment.’

My brain scrambled.

‘Is it cancer?’ I asked, already breaking down. I needed my wife, Ellen because I knew I couldn’t handle this alone.

So they ushered me into a separate room with the kidney specialist nurse, who sat with me, made me a cup of tea,  and walked with me around the hospital while I waited for my wife. I just felt numb.

When she finally walked in half an hour later, I started crying. Then we had to go back into the room for the rest of the news.  

They explained that I had a 6cm tumour on my right kidney. I didn’t yet know the tumour was cancerous – but that was the moment my life changed forever.   

My first symptom came in 2021; lower back pain that I blamed on badminton. I didn’t think of this as anything other than my age creeping up on me – after all, I was 44.

When my tumour was discovered, I knew needed my wife, Ellen – I couldn’t handle this alone (Picture: Umesh Patel)

I suppose there were times where I was urinating more in the night and the odd time my urine was cloudy, but I didn’t realise this could have had any serious consequences. I wasn’t really concerned about these symptoms because I was generally quite healthy otherwise.

But then things escalated in October 2024. I went to the loo before bed and the entire stream of my urine was red with blood.

I wasn’t actually that worried because I just dismissed it as kidney stones, even though I’d never had anything like it before.

Ellen was already asleep so I decided I’d tell her in the morning. Sure enough, she was very pragmatic – her advice was to call the doctor and get an appointment.

At the GP, I gave a urine sample that resembled the colour of Ribena and I was sent straight to A&E for further investigation. That’s when I properly started to worry.

I needed another scan to check if the cancer had spread elsewhere (Picture: Umesh Patel)

The next few weeks were a whirlwind of scans, waiting and more tests, and on a cold November morning, I got the news about the 6cm tumour on my kidney.

The days following that news was a whirlwind. At my lowest, I found myself planning Ellen’s life without me.

I needed another scan to check if the cancer had spread elsewhere, so waiting for the results of that was the single most anxious moment of my entire life. They call it ‘scanxiety’. 

Thankfully it hadn’t and I was given two options: a partial nephrectomy – which is a surgical procedure to remove a portion of the kidney while preserving the remaining healthy kidney tissue to try and save some organ function – or a full removal.  

For me, it was a no-brainer. They might not get all of it if it was the former so I decided to have the kidney removed.  

From that point, things happened fast. In early December – only eight days after I’d been told about the tumour – my kidney was removed.

As I went into the operation, I thought I wouldn’t make it off the table. I just tried to picture the simple joy of sitting on the sofa with Ellen and the kids, nine and 11.

We hadn’t told our children anything about it. What they knew at the time was that I was experiencing bleeding and that I needed an operation because my kidney was poorly.

Once the tumour was out, then came the wait to see if it was cancerous. This was a scary time.

It was during my post-op review in January that I sat down in front of the doctor and he said: ‘It’s really great news, the cancer was all contained to the kidney – and it’s all been removed’.

I was relieved that I didn’t need any further treatment (Picture: Umesh Patel)

The relief I felt in that moment is difficult to explain. I was quite numb to it at first and it took some time to feel anything but anxiety.

Thankfully, there was no immunotherapy needed, just regular monitoring – CT scans and blood tests for the next five years. That’s it.    

I was relieved that I didn’t need any further treatment, but once someone tells you that you have cancer, you never really feel the same again.  

Even after hearing I was cancer-free, I couldn’t shake the fear. For weeks – maybe months – I thought I was going to die.

I’ll never forget the kidney specialist nurse who made time stand still on one of the worst mornings of my life (Picture: Umesh Patel)

But I went through counselling sessions offered through the national charity Kidney Cancer UK – six weekly sessions and another six on an adhoc basis – and they helped me unpack the weight I was carrying.

As for my remaining kidney, it’s doing its best, though I’m being monitored closely because my function has dipped slightly. It could just be the kidney adapting.  

We’ll see, but I’m here. Living. 

I feel lucky – not everyone gets that kind of speed or support. My medical team was incredible.

My wife, Ellen, even more so. And of course, the kidney specialist nurse who made time stand still on one of the worst mornings of my life – I’ll never forget her.   

If there’s one thing I want people to know: don’t ignore symptoms. Life gets busy but trust your gut. Push for tests. You deserve answers.   

Cancer doesn’t always mean the end. Sometimes it’s the beginning of fighting for yourself in a whole new way.   

So don’t be afraid to ask for support. 

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