Hope raised for former Wingate player Spencer McCall in his battle against a rare cancer

McCall played under former Stevenage boss Darren Sarll as a youngster with Boro before carving out a fine career in non-league with the likes of Wingate & Finchley and Hemel Hempstead Town.

But after what he thought was a simple stress fracture football injury was diagnosed as Ewing’s Sarcoma, a rare bone cancer, he underwent 14 cycles of chemotherapy and three major surgeries.

It looked as if those had worked as in September 2019 he was given the all-clear.

But two weeks after his 25th birthday a routine scan showed the cancer had spread to his lungs and there were multiple tumours.

More chemo had been unable to stabilise the disease and the recommendation given was specialists who offer innovative treatments.

They are all abroad, though, so raising the funds was his next obstacle. But in an update on his Just Giving page, he said he has now been given hope.

“After raising the funds my initial plan was to travel to Germany to have Cyberknife radiotherapy on my lungs, followed by immune-boosting vaccines,” he said.

“I was so excited to begin this treatment in August but unfortunately at the last minute I was told that my disease was too advanced.”

McCall did travel to Germany and Latvia for other treatment but while they had an effect, the spread of the disease was still proving too quick.

“I needed alternatives fast but we felt like we were back to square one,” he added.

“Luck was on my side and a close friend of mine had come across a success story of a fellow sarcoma patient who was receiving treatment at the Immunity Therapy Center in Tijuana, Mexico.

Wingate & Finchley players have a water break during a match against Hemel Hempstead Town in the Spencer McCall Charity Tournament (pic: Martin Addison). (Image: martin.addison@btinternet.com)

“After reaching out and consulting with the doctors at ITC and understanding their approach of mixing alternative therapies with traditional medicine, I realised fairly quickly this was a great opportunity for me.”

He has since been receiving treatment six days a week in Mexico for just over 18 weeks with the treatments specifically tailored for his type of cancer.

“The way they administer chemotherapy here is totally different to how it’s done at home and I haven’t had to endure the gruelling side effects I had to go through last year,” he said.

“I’m looking and feeling the best I have throughout my whole cancer journey and know it’s because of the whole-body healing approach here.”

The results have been promising too with scans revealing either a shrinking of the tumours or at the very least, remaining stable in size.

His last scan in February “demonstrated that the overall total number of tumours in my lungs had decreased by 40 per cent”. But while the hope is rising, so too is the cost, one week of treatment costs $6,000.

It has led McCall to ask for further help and additional funding to help see him through the final leg. He said: “With the additional funding required to fund my ongoing treatment I have had to up the original fundraising target.

“I really appreciate the pandemic has had a huge financial impact on many and asking for additional funding has been a difficult decision that I’ve been putting off until now. To say I’m extremely grateful is a complete understatement and I cannot express how thankful I am to everyone that has supported me in my journey to fight this disease.

“I will never forget the day when I was sitting in the doctor’s office in London last summer with [my girlfriend] Sarah and we were told nothing more could be done for me.

“To have been given hope since and to finally be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel is a feeling I can’t quite put into words. With your help I’m really looking forward to the future.”

To donate or to spread the word further, go to www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/spencer-mccall