OLI Penno was diagnosed with testicular cancer after his GP initially mistook the disease for an STI.
The 19-year-old from Launceston, Cornwall, first noticed swelling and pain in his testicle in October 2023.
Oli Penno was diagnosed with testicular cancer after his GP initially mistook the disease for an STI[/caption]
But when he saw his GP, he was told it was an infection and prescribed antibiotics.
As the pain persisted, he returned two more times, only to be advised to get tested for a sexually transmitted infection (STI) or urinary tract infection (UTI).
By January 2024, the “constant pain” had become unbearable.
Oli woke up in agony and called NHS 111, prompting an urgent visit to A&E in Bath, where doctors completed a physical exam, an ultrasound, blood tests and a CT scan.
He then received the devastating news that he had testicular cancer and it had spread to his abdomen and he had lesions on his lungs.
“I was extremely worried because I’d known I’d had symptoms for ages,” Oli said.
“So I thought, how bad could it have gotten over those three, almost four, months waiting?”
At the time, Oli was in his first year at Bath Spa University studying sociology and politics.
But his world came crashing down when doctors told him he needed an immediate orchidectomy – surgery to remove his right testicle – followed by chemotherapy.
“I was worried about, will I get back into university afterwards? Will my friendships stay the same? How will people treat me during it?” he said.
“It was fast-spreading and I thought I could spend the last couple weeks of my life having chemo and then doctors could tell me that they couldn’t do anything to save me.”
MAJOR SIDE EFFECTS
Surgery to remove his testicle took place on January 16 2024 and Oli said it all went well and he now has a “cool scar”.
However, being told there could be potential side effects of infertility and lowered testosterone production, Oli feared he might need further treatment, such as testosterone replacement therapy, later on.
He said: “These side effects can have a big impact on your life, especially as I’m a young man still growing up and developing.
“I was worried about whether my mates would think of me differently because of the surgery – which, luckily, they didn’t.”
After surgery, Oli started the first of three rounds of chemotherapy in Bristol and he had difficult conversations with his friends and family about the future.
He was told there could be potential side effects of infertility and lowered testosterone production (Oli with his father Andy before his diagnosis)[/caption]
He is now on a mission to raise awareness to help others with cancer (Oli with his girlfriend and family in Spain)[/caption]
He described his diagnosis as a “rollercoaster”, but one particular conversation stands out as being the most emotional.
“I was really open about it with my close friends from home and said: ‘I think there’s a chance this could be it for me’,” Oli said.
“It was a terrible conversation to be having at 18… we’d gone from planning a big trip abroad for when we’d finished uni, to thinking I might not make it through the year.”
”I FELT LIKE I WAS MISSING OUT’
Oli said his friends, family, girlfriend, Teenage Cancer Trust nurse Liz and the entire team at Ward D603 at the Bristol Haematology and Oncology Centre were incredibly supportive, helping him through the “high days and low days”.
After finishing treatment in April, Oli thought he could “finally start getting back into things”.
But he was admitted to hospital three more times with infections, including sepsis, causing him to lose 10kg in a week.
He said this was “scary” and it was difficult seeing his friends continue with university life.
How to check for testicular cancer
- A normal testicle should feel smooth and firm but not hard.
- It is easier to check right after a warm bath or shower, when the scrotal skin is relaxed.
- Macmillan’s guidelines are to hold the scrotum in the palm of your hand and use your fingers and thumb to examine each testicle for lumps, swellings, differences between testicles and anything unusual.
- It is normal for one testicle to be slightly different in size or to hang lower than the other.
The good news though is that testicular cancer is treated successfully in 95 per cent of cases, and the cure rate rises to 98 per cent if treated early.
So stay vigilant, check regularly and see your GP if you have any concerns.
Source: NHS + Macmillan
“I felt like I was missing out… but at the same time, that was almost uplifting because I thought that’s what I will be able to do once I’m better, so it kept me going,” he said.
After being declared cancer-free, Oli decided to fundraise to help other young people with cancer, raising more than £4,000 for Teenage Cancer Trust with 3,000 push-ups in a month.
He required a second surgery in December to remove any potentially cancerous lymph nodes, leaving him with six more scars along the bottom of his abdomen, but he said these now remind him of his “growth”.
GET CHECKED MISSION
Oli has had two parties to celebrate making it through treatment and is having regular check-ups and tests to ensure “everything is all clear”.
He is now on a mission to raise awareness to help others with cancer and wants to encourage people to get checked if they notice any unusual symptoms.
“I never thought I’d be in a position where something’s happened to me but I’ve been able to turn that into a way I can help people,” he said.
“Hopefully, even if it’s just one person, sharing my story will affect their life for the good.”
Oli is backing Teenage Cancer Trust’s Only Young Once campaign, which is raising awareness of the impacts of cancer and the support needed to help teenagers cope and rebuild their lives afterwards.
