Dad claims his incurable cancer was repeatedly missed by GP and told 'tests cost the NHS money'

Geoff Duke, who was diagnosed with myeloma in 2015 at the age of 42, has vowed to ensure others don’t ever have to endure what he did.

The father-of-four had been suffering from persistent and excruciating back pain for over a decade before he began passing out at work as a civil servant.

After numerous doctors appointments Geoff says he pleaded with his GP to order a blood test or scan, but insists he was repeatedly told “tests cost the NHS money” and sent away with painkillers.

Geoff, who is now retired, then changed his GP practice where he was diagnosed with the rare blood cancer following a blood test.

He said: “I knew there was something seriously wrong with my back and I specifically asked the GP to do a blood test or a scan but I was told I was getting old, that tests cost the NHS money and that I would have to learn to live with it.

"I kept collapsing on the floor so paramedics were in and out. I couldn’t work.”

Geoff, now 50, is now in remission after undergoing a clinical trial.

He added: “I was given a prognosis of three years so if I hadn’t changed my doctors and kept pushing then there’s a good chance it could have been fatal.

"It was an extremely tough time when I was diagnosed, especially telling my wife and children but after my diagnosis I felt justified because I knew there was something wrong. Now I want to encourage others to keep going back to their GP and not to accept being fobbed off.”

Avoidable delays in diagnosis have also caused irreversible damage which has impacted Geoff’s mobility including back fractures and spinal compression caused by myeloma.

Geoff, from Washington, said: “The effect on my life has been huge. My mobility is pretty bad and I walk with a stick now and it has affected my mental health a lot. I had to retire from a very good job that I was good at.

“Myeloma is the worst kind of cancer. It’s prolonged, there is no cure. There’s no ringing the bell. When you relapse you go through it all over again. There’s no end game. Even when you go in remission, the underlying cancer is still there. But it didn’t have to take so long to be diagnosed. I don’t want the same thing to happen to other people.”

Despite being the third most common type of blood cancer, myeloma is particularly difficult to diagnose as symptoms, including easily broken bones, fatigue and recurring infection, are often linked to general ageing or minor conditions.

Myeloma UK Acting Director of Research and Patient Advocacy, Shelagh McKinlay added: “We cannot allow the lives of patients like Geoff to be diminished by avoidable delays in diagnosis.

"The quality of life of people living with myeloma has never been more important, with advances in treatment meaning that patients are now able to live longer than ever before.”