Harrogate cancer survivor to walk daughter down aisle

Sean Guinness with daughter Amelia

A father given just eight months to live in 2019 says he feels "like the luckiest man" as he prepares to walk his daughter down the aisle.

Sean Guinness, 60, from Harrogate, was treated for melanoma in 2011 before it came back eight years later, having spread to his liver and intestine.

However, despite the prognosis he said he was now "cancer-free" after undergoing immunotherapy.

He said "there are no words" to describe how grateful he feels.

"When I was really ill, Amelia wanted me to write a letter that could be read out on her wedding day," he said.

"I feel blessed that I will now be there for her."

From left: Josie, Theo, Amelia and Sean Guinness

Mr Guinness, also father to Theo, 24, said his health problems began when he noticed a mole on his leg was bleeding.

He was diagnosed as having Stage 1A melanoma, which required a small operation to remove.

The government IT specialist was told the chance of it returning was "very small", and he got on with life.

In 2019, however, he began to suffer stomach pains and scans showed the cancer had returned and it had spread.

He underwent surgery to remove part of his small intestine but three weeks later "my surgeon told me the very dramatic and scary news that I had eight months to live".

He was then recommended for immunotherapy and given medicines, including nivolumab and ipilimumab, to help his immune system find and kill the cancer cells.

Following his successful treatment Mr Guinness is now part of a programme at the University of Oxford looking into the causes and treatment of melanoma.

Mark Middleton, a melanoma oncologist at the university, said Mr Guinness had been "a fantastic advocate" for improving diagnoses and patient involvement.

Friends of Mr Guinness have also supported the programme, with a group completing a sponsored cycle ride across France to raise money.

Amelia, 28, will marry in August, with services in the UK and Spain.

Mr Guinness said: "I do not think there are any words in the English language that describe the feeling of gratefulness."