A 30-year-old man who is thought to be the only British adult to have battled an exceptionally rare cancer has tragically died. Alex Able from Horsted, Chatham, passed away surrounded by family after being diagnosed with a Rhabdoid tumour the year before.
Fighting to keep him alive, and after the tumour spread, which prompted his team at Guys Hospital in London to cease therapy, his family set up a fundraiser in July to fund treatment. Several medical professionals, including a specialist from Germany, reached out to help create a new treatment plan after being moved by seeing his story online. Tragically, after completing the first week, Alex suffered a fatal brain bleed and passed away.
Alex passed away in the arms of his wife, Elle, who he met online in 2019 and hit it off with instantly, having “practically moved in together” after the second date.
They were engaged within nine months and married within the year in a small service surrounded by a few friends during the middle of the pandemic.
One of Alex’s best friends, Billy, said: “Alex was incredibly indecisive – he would agonise over picking out a t-shirt of two virtually identical designs, but when he knew what he wanted, he just went for it.
“Elle said at the funeral that maybe the reason everything moved so quickly, which was totally out of character for Alex, was because destiny knew that they weren’t going to have a lifetime together,” reports the Mirror.
The young couple had had plans to start a family together, travel more, and move to Shropshire, where her sister, brother-in-law and newborn nephew live.
Alex’s Mother-in-law, Katie Dine, said: “We feel like he hasn’t had an opportunity to live his life. We would have fought to the ends of the earth to give him a chance. We all feel cheated by losing him because more could have been done.”
Katie spoke of his many hobbies and talents, such as art, music and motorbikes – all of which were celebrated at his funeral.
“We spent the evening sharing stories and memories. The room was filled with nothing but love for a man we all adored,” she said.
She said it was like Alex had “lived a thousand lives” and even though he doubted his ability at times, there was not much he “couldn’t put his hand to”, being both creative and academic.
Alex’s family plan to honour him by setting up The Alex Able Retreat, where those who are in similar positions to Alex can visit the fully-accesible cabins or lodges while they heal, free of charge. Funded by the remaining money raised for his alternative treatment.
A Rhabdoid tumour is an exceptionally rare and aggressive type of cancer, which spreads fast and is difficult to treat.
The tumours rarely occur in adults, and mainly affect infants between 11 months and 18 months old. There have only been 11 cases in Europe and Alex was understood to have had the first adult diagnosis in the UK.