News News Blog: Peter Stringfellow

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PETER Stringfellow does not come across as the type to be burdened by regrets. </h2>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnMDEEULyezT6psdh-OOHubOMsZ3E-_UFpQGYuubdKoh2IKPUW7gYde4MYRO_11Y_Zos_64aSprlzYoy3pFn1URMjfNam1x_n7l2ZOh3EeZVfgVjJqGgOCxHv2A8YYqAYO6wtJ-L183bl3/s1600/Peter+Stringfellow-+I+feel+so+guilty+for+keeping+my+cancer+a+secret.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Peter Stringfellow: I feel so guilty for keeping my cancer a secret" border="0" height="378" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnMDEEULyezT6psdh-OOHubOMsZ3E-_UFpQGYuubdKoh2IKPUW7gYde4MYRO_11Y_Zos_64aSprlzYoy3pFn1URMjfNam1x_n7l2ZOh3EeZVfgVjJqGgOCxHv2A8YYqAYO6wtJ-L183bl3/s640/Peter+Stringfellow-+I+feel+so+guilty+for+keeping+my+cancer+a+secret.jpg" title="Peter Stringfellow: I feel so guilty for keeping my cancer a secret" width="640" /></a></div>
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The 75-year-old Sheffield-born lad who made good in the world of nightclubs has lived life to the full, rubbing shoulders with countless celebrities while carving out his own success. </div>
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But there is one thing that troubles him as he looks back on his recent health history.</div>
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It was the decision to keep secret the lung cancer diagnosis which he received in 2008. </div>
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Shocked by the unexpected news, lifelong non-smoker Peter told only a handful of very close family members and friends. </div>
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But he ordered a total press blackout to avoid attracting unwanted attention as another cancer patient. </div>
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The news only leaked out last year, nearly six years after doctors found a life-threatening tumour in his lungs. </div>
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“I do feel guilty about not telling the press at the time,” says Peter, who with former ballerina wife Bella, 33, has two young children Rosabella, two, and Angelo, three months. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixV1wiLy8Xkz7HOm3loUaoJAk6wwc8MHRN2favChKfFCNJnVPLdbHXluiSjjE92AjYQ_9uH_1htjyRBuM2ij_PyLeCml4mAs-6fbS_BEPn1YOqPCPa-fl7yv1VjNq4fuvFHRwmprvo5DXP/s1600/Peter+Stringfellow-+I+feel+so+guilty+for+keeping+my+cancer+a+secret+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Peter Stringfellow: I feel so guilty for keeping my cancer a secret" border="0" height="454" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixV1wiLy8Xkz7HOm3loUaoJAk6wwc8MHRN2favChKfFCNJnVPLdbHXluiSjjE92AjYQ_9uH_1htjyRBuM2ij_PyLeCml4mAs-6fbS_BEPn1YOqPCPa-fl7yv1VjNq4fuvFHRwmprvo5DXP/s640/Peter+Stringfellow-+I+feel+so+guilty+for+keeping+my+cancer+a+secret+2.jpg" title="Peter Stringfellow: I feel so guilty for keeping my cancer a secret" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Peter Stringfellow made his name rubbing shoulders with celebrities in his exclusive nightclubs</td></tr>
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“But I didn’t want to be known as ‘poor old Pete who had cancer’. I think I just wanted to avoid all the sympathy. </div>
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“But every year since I have felt more and more guilty because, if I had made it known more widely, there’s a chance I might have been able to help other men in a similar position.” </div>
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His secrecy over cancer is especially poignant, given the recent deaths of rock star David Bowie and Hollywood actor Alan Rickman from tumours which they had not made public. </div>
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But there’s another reason for talking openly about the difficulties faced by people of a similar age who are lucky enough to survive cancer or other serious diseases. </div>
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It’s the problem of securing travel insurance. </div>
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Cancer Research UK says many high street travel insurance firms will only sell insurance if cancer survivors have a doctor’s certificate confirming they no longer have the disease and are fit enough to travel. </div>
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It says: “Insurance companies differ on how long you must be free of cancer before they will issue you a policy. </div>
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“Some say three months, some 12 months. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYcfKISUkje2W7ZCU1faVZAQlILrP-AduRDDeJwuIsqQV5ZmRVLIDhUaZ_ECfiOqMYZq7OdAHgL5MjQ5rMxn5OJ25cXYjro3OKuiWThBkUGOAw4gc2v8skyGONlpfLi6qPTR0sRxwpfs9O/s1600/Peter+Stringfellow-+I+feel+so+guilty+for+keeping+my+cancer+a+secret+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Peter Stringfellow: I feel so guilty for keeping my cancer a secret" border="0" height="410" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYcfKISUkje2W7ZCU1faVZAQlILrP-AduRDDeJwuIsqQV5ZmRVLIDhUaZ_ECfiOqMYZq7OdAHgL5MjQ5rMxn5OJ25cXYjro3OKuiWThBkUGOAw4gc2v8skyGONlpfLi6qPTR0sRxwpfs9O/s640/Peter+Stringfellow-+I+feel+so+guilty+for+keeping+my+cancer+a+secret+3.jpg" title="Peter Stringfellow: I feel so guilty for keeping my cancer a secret" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The 75-year-old says it is incredibly difficult to get travel insurance as a cancer survivor</td></tr>
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“And some will not cover you unless you have been cancer free for 10 years. If you have finished treatment quite recently, be prepared that rates will be higher.” </div>
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Stringfellow is fronting an advertising campaign by Essex-based insurer Avanti targeting older high-risk customers who have medical conditions which mean they are unable to get cover elsewhere. </div>
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“I’ve never used my name to advertise anything,” says Peter. </div>
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“But this is a real problem for what I call the ‘New Agers’, older people who want to continue living their lives.” </div>
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Aside from a knee replacement back in the 1970s and some inevitable age-related hearing loss, the nightclub mogul enjoyed generally good health until 2008. </div>
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But having seen friends of a similar age diagnosed with prostate cancer he decided it would be sensible to be checked. </div>
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“I have two young children so I have no problem going to see a doctor. I’m no hypochondriac but I’m smart enough to know not to hang around if you are worried about something.” </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJOOaPdHTBxuq3UJv52QmKevV34Yg2dMoCpzykaf0uGI0iE3-C9vMFukogGO1WQTC0rzGvFs6UbUkEm_sM6jDzK79ucgxv6lTE7Cn7VRpz8TDK69j3ogrp3K5eNeKFkLnxAw8n9J0TjF7b/s1600/Peter+Stringfellow-+I+feel+so+guilty+for+keeping+my+cancer+a+secret+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Peter Stringfellow: I feel so guilty for keeping my cancer a secret" border="0" height="452" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJOOaPdHTBxuq3UJv52QmKevV34Yg2dMoCpzykaf0uGI0iE3-C9vMFukogGO1WQTC0rzGvFs6UbUkEm_sM6jDzK79ucgxv6lTE7Cn7VRpz8TDK69j3ogrp3K5eNeKFkLnxAw8n9J0TjF7b/s640/Peter+Stringfellow-+I+feel+so+guilty+for+keeping+my+cancer+a+secret+4.jpg" title="Peter Stringfellow: I feel so guilty for keeping my cancer a secret" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Doctors found a cancerous tumour on Stringfellow's left lung, but were able to remove it in time</td></tr>
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Peter booked what he thought was a prostate exam with his private GP. </div>
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But on arrival he discovered he had actually been booked in for a much more expensive whole-body scan, designed to provide a head-to-toe health check. </div>
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It was an error which may have saved his life. </div>
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“I went ahead with it and then a few days later I got a call from the surgery,” says Peter, who also has two older children from previous marriages. </div>
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“Of course, my first thought was that they had indeed found something wrong with my prostate. </div>
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“When I saw the specialist he said my prostate was fine but they had found something on my left lung that they were not happy about. I was completely shocked. I have never smoked but I have been working in nightclubs since 1962 and my mother was a chain smoker right up until she died in her seventies. </div>
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“My father smoked too but quit in his fifties. I thought ‘this is ridiculous, I’ve never touched cigarettes’. </div>
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“But the doctor said it was probably due to years of exposure to second-hand smoke. </div>
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“I’ve spent more than 50 years in clubs where people nearly always smoked and that’s what caused it.” </div>
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Even so, he was told there was a 90 per cent chance that the growth was harmless and could simply be removed through surgery. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUHEJfshBPT_V5V9-gs5eQCSMUM205n8P46v_CZ6Sj0tH72vFHpsjNBjUA2zyCdSFPfXYWRpqbOA_3kVRAJJ9qUc0Y5T-M6qY-lzsfYi3ds2ALqGBAt7C5t0fSUA5lRfQjuJy_a2KlyYpF/s1600/Peter+Stringfellow-+I+feel+so+guilty+for+keeping+my+cancer+a+secret+5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Peter Stringfellow: I feel so guilty for keeping my cancer a secret" border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUHEJfshBPT_V5V9-gs5eQCSMUM205n8P46v_CZ6Sj0tH72vFHpsjNBjUA2zyCdSFPfXYWRpqbOA_3kVRAJJ9qUc0Y5T-M6qY-lzsfYi3ds2ALqGBAt7C5t0fSUA5lRfQjuJy_a2KlyYpF/s640/Peter+Stringfellow-+I+feel+so+guilty+for+keeping+my+cancer+a+secret+5.jpg" title="Peter Stringfellow: I feel so guilty for keeping my cancer a secret" width="446" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Surgeons had removed half of Peter's lung and a rib in order to get to the tumour</td></tr>
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Doctors agreed to operate in order to perform a biopsy, taking small amounts of tissue for testing. </div>
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But they made it clear that if the tumour looked suspicious during the procedure they would remove the whole thing. </div>
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“When I woke up Bella was by my bed holding my hand,” says Peter. </div>
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“I felt very sore. It turned out it was malignant and surgeons had removed half my lung and a rib in order to get to the tumour. </div>
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“They said if I had waited until I had symptoms, such as a persistent cough or chest pain, it would almost certainly have been too late. </div>
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“Once symptoms are noticeable it’s usually too far gone. </div>
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“It took a while to recover from the surgery. But the only people who knew were my doctors, Bella and one or two very close friends. </div>
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“Anybody else who asked was told I had just been out of action with a bad infection or flu. </div>
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“Now I just feel incredibly lucky to be alive.”</div>
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Peter Stringfellow: I feel so guilty for keeping my cancer a secret

PETER Stringfellow does not come across as the type to be burdened by regrets. The 75-year-old Sheffield-born lad who made good...

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