Father-of-four Damien Purss with daughters Jasmin, 10, and twins Leila and Lillyanna, 3. Picture: SYLVIA LIBER
As Damien Purss had a potentially lethal dose of chemotherapy pumped through his body, he had a sobering message for all Illawarra men.
"Don't ignore symptoms like I did. By the time I got to the doctors three and a half years later the cancer was all through me."
Mr Purss's case is so severe that regular chemotherapy hasn't worked.
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His best chance is high-dose chemotherapy combined with stem cell transplants - a radical new approach to the aggressive testicular cancer he has.
From his hospital bed on Tuesday, Mr Purss told the Mercury his latest test results were "cancer-clear".
"I'm a bit in shock, I was hoping for the best, but I was expecting the worst, so fingers crossed," the Unanderra man said.
He found out he had testicular cancer in March. But the signs were there much earlier.
Mr Purss said one of his testicles became "hard like a rock" but he did nothing at the time, more concerned with his partner Amy's complicated pregnancy.
"I knew something was wrong back then, but I wanted to look after my family, make sure they were okay, then after a few months it went away," he said.
But the cancer hadn't gone anywhere - in fact it was taking over his body.
So the busy father-of-four had to give up his landscaping business and focus on fighting for his life.
The best chance was treatment at Sydney's Royal Prince Alfred Hospital where experts pumped him with chemo at strengths known to damage bone marrow.
Before each chemotherapy session, doctors take blood-forming stem cells from his bloodstream, then infuse them into his veins much like a blood transfusion.
The stem cells settle in the bone marrow and start making new blood cells.
"It's 15 times stronger than regular chemo, it nearly kills you, but the stem cells help me recover," Mr Purss said.
"They reboot my system, they kick-start me so I can go again."
Mr Purss hopes to be over the worst of his cancer ordeal and is looking to his future.
As he felt the drugs take effect yesterday, the ghastly side-effects were a little easier to swallow thanks to his good news.
But the treatment has taken a huge emotional and financial toll.
To donate to the Damien Purss Charity Appeal call 0423 762 664 or visit Facebook page Damien Purss Charity Appeal.
