Terminally ill dad's cancer campaign inspires song

A father-of-two who has raised £200,000 for charity since being diagnosed with terminal bowel cancer has inspired a Stoke-on-Trent musician to write a song after hearing his story.

Kevin Griffiths from Trentham was diagnosed in 2020, aged 44, and his cancer has since spread.

Despite being told he had just two years to live, he launched Cancer My Arse, a campaign raising money for charities and awareness of the disease.

Simon Deakin, who performs under the name Deak Gray, was so impressed by his efforts that he wrote a song about cancer called Woke Up This Morning, with money raised going to the charity.

Griffiths was surprised with a live performance of the track at the ST9 ball, an annual fundraising event, where he had helped raise £30,000.

He said he was "blown away by it" and "in tears" when he heard the song.

"I can't thank him enough," he said of Deakin. "It means so much to my family."

Griffiths is still undergoing extensive treatment, spending almost half his time on chemotherapy. He said the staff helped make the experience more comfortable.

"They're all smiling; they make it as comfortable as that experience can possibly be and you have a laugh," he said.

Deakin had heard about the campaign from his wife, Sharon, who is one of the nurses caring for the Griffiths. He said he was inspired and wanted to find a way to give something back.

"Sharon told me about Kev, then told me about the ST9 ball," he said. "The more I found out about Kevin the more inspired I was."

He said his mother had died from cancer, and the song was "all about me giving back a little bit".

Money raised at the event, and from the song, is going to Dougie Mac, which supports people with life-limiting conditions, as well as to mental health services.

Some of the funds will also help pay for immunotherapy for 19-year-old Jack Muni, who has stage four metastatic melanoma.

Griffiths said Muni had been diagnosed with cancer aged 12 but had "unfortunately run out of options on the NHS".

A GoFundMe page set up by Muni's mother, Angela Butler, has raised more than £20,000 of the £100,000 she says is needed for private treatment.

Griffiths' previous fundraising work has included cycling challenges. Despite no longer being able to ride a bike himself, his love of the sport has inspired him to organise charity events for other cyclists.

He also campaigned successfully for sanitary bins to be installed in men's toilets after he had his colon removed and a stoma put in place.

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