'I thought fit people like me don't get lung cancer'

Susie Wilson-Rowe, with her son Zach, was on maternity leave when she was diagnosed with lung cancer

A former England cricketer diagnosed with lung cancer while on maternity leave is raising awareness of the disease in healthy non-smokers so others may "live longer".

Susie Wilson-Rowe, 38, played for Kent Cricket and England before having her son, Zach, last year, and started suffering with pain in her ribs and back.

As an elite athlete and non-smoker, she had barely considered the disease until doctors found a tumour and diagnosed her with stage four lung cancer.

"In the middle of all the scans I thought... I'm fit and healthy... people like me don't get lung cancer, so to say it was a shock was an understatement," she said.

With Kent Cricket, Wilson-Rowe was part of five Women's County Championship title-winning sides and two teams that won the National Women's T20 competition

The NHS said smoking was the most common cause of lung cancer, accounting for seven out of 10 cases, but cases among non-smokers are on the rise.

Screening is being rolled out across England for 55-74-year-olds, but is not done everywhere and there are no plans to introduce it for younger patients.

The diagnosis for non-smokers is more common in women – twice that of men, and the under 55s - according to the Ruth Strauss Foundation, set up in memory of the late wife of former England Cricket Captain Sir Andrew Strauss, who was diagnosed with incurable lung cancer and died, aged 46, in 2018.

Wilson-Rowe is currently undergoing an intensive course of chemotherapy, and is using a form of immunotherapy not available on the NHS.

The Exon 20 Group, formed of patients, scientists, and oncologists, is looking into the specific mutation that led to Susie's cancer, and researching further treatments.

'It's a waiting game'

Susie's partner, Jen Wilson-Rowe, said: "There are other treatments that are helping patients respond well but it's a waiting game as they haven't been approved yet.

"You're holding your breath constantly, [hoping] that when the next round of approvals are done that there may be another targeted immunotherapy approved so that if this one did fail there's an immediate go-to for next steps."

The treatment has been effective so far, and Wilson-Rowe said her tumour has reduced in size and there is no longer cancer present in her spine and lymph nodes.

She added: "We don't know what the future holds but we're optimistic my body can fight as long as possible…we're just hopeful the treatment keeps me stable.

"My message is that if you know something's not right, follow it up…had I known that lung cancer can happen to healthy people, it could have been picked up much earlier."