A BOXING coach from Llandudno who was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer has had more than £3,000 raised for him so far by his friend and colleague.

Mike Egan, 33, a former Muay Thai kickboxing champion, was initially told almost a month ago he had Non-Hodgkin lymphoma, before being re-diagnosed on September 17 with lymphoblastic t-cell lymphoma.

It means that Mike, who runs and is a coach and personal trainer at Gym 13 in Rhos-on-Sea, could be unable to work for six to nine months while he undergoes his treatment.

To support him, his fellow Gym 13 coach and personal trainer, Osian Williams, also a former professional boxer, started running a half-marathon a day for 30 days on September 13.

Having initially known Mike about four years ago, when he was his own boxing coach, Osian is determined to do whatever he can to help his ‘best mate’ at such a difficult time.

Osian said: “He’s a really good person and does so much for the community. He’s taken all of this with a pinch of salt, to be honest.

“The way he’s been with it is incredible; a lot of people would’ve folded but he’s determined to get better. He’s in a really positive, good mindset. He’s my best mate, we’re really close.

“I’m just looking to raise as much money as we can I him because he’ll be out of work for nine months, maybe longer, so it’s just to support him as best I can.

“The gym will still be running; I’m taking over the classes and his clients, but I’ll be giving him the money from his clients. This money is just for him to survive, really.”

It is an even more admirable gesture from Osian considering he also works 14-hour shifts three days a week at Cambian Pengwern College in Rhyl, a specialist college for young adults with autism.

As he approaches the halfway mark of his 30 half-marathons, he hopes to ultimately surpass £5,000 raised for Mike, and said his body is slowly adjusting to his Herculean efforts.

Osian added: “I’ve been doing them usually from Abergele to Rhyl and back, but I’ve been mixing it up – wherever’s flat, to be honest!

“The first couple of days were horrendous, but I feel my body is getting used to it now. I get up at 5am to do my run and then I’m back in work, so it’s a bit hectic.

“Anything to get his name out there a bit more helps massively. Initially, I put the target as £1,000, and it went over that in about a day. I’d like to try and hit £5,000 for him; that would be nice.”

It has, of course, been a period of great uncertainty for Mike, ever since he discovered lumps ‘the size of ping pong balls’ on his body about five months ago, and his first course of chemotherapy will begin this week.

But he remains upbeat about his chances of recovery, and is extremely grateful to Mike and those who have helped him in the meantime, including the staff at The Christie NHS Foundation Trust in Manchester, where he is staying as an inpatient for now.

Mike said: “I have the odd moment here and there when I think about the worst case scenario, but 90 per cent of the time, I’m fine with it. I’m in the best place to be looked after; the care that I’m getting is brilliant. It’s non-stop.

“They put me on steroids already and I can feel the lumps in my body start to break down and get smaller and more supple. My cancer is Stage Four, but they said that’s just a way of explaining where it is in your body.

“I know they can’t say for sure, but all the doctors seem to be very confident. I don’t want to be cocky about things either, because you don’t know what’s going to happen. But ALL (acute lymphoblastic leukaemia) cancer, I think, has a really high success rate of going into remission.

“They said they’re looking at about six to nine months until my treatment finishes, and then within about two years, I’ll be completely back to normal, hopefully.

“He (Osian) is doing something really good and putting his body through it to try and help me out, and I massively appreciate it. The amount of support and help I’ve had so far is insane; it’s just nice that people care, really.”

You can add to Osian’s total, and help him edge closer to his £5,000 target for Mike, by donating at: www.gofundme.com/f/32hew-treatment-funding.

To get in touch about booking coaching sessions at Gym 13, you can email theimmortalsfitness@gmail.com.