A Victoria man diagnosed with a rare form of eye cancer five years ago will run the distance of a marathon to raise funds for others who are dealing with the same diagnosis.

Nigel Deacon was diagnosed with ocular melanoma in 2010. Two years later the cancer spread and Deacon “thought it was game over,” and registered for hospice care.

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“But here I am … about to run a marathon – that’s the miracle part,” he said.

In Canada, only a few hundred people are diagnosed with ocular melanoma per year and with no approved or covered treatment in the county it can be an even more daunting diagnosis.

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Deacon got lucky and tried an experimental immunotherapy treatment. While he can’t be certain if it was the drug trail or the radiation, his cancer “seemed to stop growing almost completely” and in 213 Deacon went into remission.

Now Deacon is preparing for his next obstacle. He will be running 42.1 kilometers throughout Greater Victoria on Sep. 26 as part of the Move for Melanoma annual event, put on by the Save Your Skin Foundation. All of the money raised will go directly to financially supporting Canadian melanoma, non-melanoma and ocular melanoma patients with things such as uncovered treatment costs, transportation, lost wages and child care.

To make a donation in support of Deacon visit bit.ly/2E4aix7.

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