Man, 29, who 'thought he needed to exercise more' diagnosed with stage 4 cancer

A man who thought he was 'getting out of breath' because he was not exercising has been diagnosed with cancer. Stephen opened up about his lung cancer journey in an online video.

He told how he was just 29 years old when he was left in shock over his diagnosis. This was mostly because he did not realise there was anything wrong with his health - but there was one symptom he had noticed.

Before receiving his Stage 4 diagnosis, Stephen said he would get out of breath. But he thought it was a normal part of ageing as he was not regularly exercising.

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He said: "I was getting out of breath quickly, and I was doing student teaching, and I was just having a hard time you know with coughing - just like, persistent coughing. But it was interruptive coughing is what I remember the most.

"I would just be casually talking and all of a sudden I would have to cough real quick. They were actually just getting more in the way to the point now where I couldn't ignore them.

"I was trying to lie down at night, and go to sleep, and I was having a really hard time breathing, and I felt like I was always just trying to cough to clear my throat."

Stephen recalled driving home and rubbing his neck. It was then that he discovered a 'very hard nodule' in his collarbone.

He went to the doctor who at first thought he had bronchitis. Initially, they thought the nodule was fine because he was 'young'.

The video - which was shared on the @younglungcancerisathing account- has been viewed hundreds of times. One person said: "My son was 16 when he got lung cancer.

"He passed away seven years after." Another wrote: "So sorry, don't give up the fight. Cancer sucks." A third commeted: "The interruptive cough. Definitely one of the biggest symptoms."

According to the NHS, the early signs of lung cancer can be hard to detect as there are often few symptoms. They usually develop as the condition progresses.

The main symptoms of lung cancer include:

• A cough that persists for longer than three weeks
• A long-standing cough that worsens with time
• Recurring chest infections
• Coughing up blood
• Pain when breathing or coughing
• Breathlessness
• Persistent tiredness or lack of energy
• Loss of appetite or unexplained weight loss