A CANCER patient who was diagnosed with an aggressive strand of the disease seven years ago has won an award for his blog.
Chris Lewis, 57, of South Croydon, was diagnosed with incurable stage 4 mantle cell lymphoma in 2007 and told he might only last six months.
He has undergone treatment since then and has now received recognition for writing on the subject by winning the Health Individual title at the National UK Blog Awards.
Mr Lewis, a former business consultant, started his blog Chris's Cancer Community in 2012 after he appeared on Channel 4 show You Deserve This House, a home makeover show rewarding community heroes.
He said: "When I went on the show someone said I'd have to have something online about myself because people would be searching for my story.
"By that point, I'd already told people my story so many times, it seemed a logical step to write it down somewhere people could see. Now it is read in most countries around the world."
The father-of-two, married to Sue, is currently undergoing treatment because his body is rejecting the stem cell transplant he had in 2007 to save his life.
"When I started my treatment it was very aggressive and my prognosis was very poor," Mr Lewis added.
"We had to talk about it [dying] and plan for it because it was stage 4 lymphoma. There is no stage 5. I've been living on the edge for years."
Mr Lewis talks about his own experiences in the blog but tries to make it as broad as he can, so it relates to as many people affected by cancer as possible.
He said: "I have to put my own experiences in because otherwise it would have no credence.
"That comes with confidence; being able to talk about your own diagnosis.
Mr Lewis has started a charity to raise money to buy specialist equipment for the ward at St George's Hospital in Tooting where he was treated.
To donate visit www. justgiving.com/chrislewis2 and to read his blog visit www. chris-cancercommunity.com
