John Walker Pattison’s life reads like a novel—as someone who has survived cancer for more than 50 years making him one of the longest cancer survivors in the world today, he has faced unimaginable challenges, breathtaking comebacks, and deep spiritual journeys.
Diagnosed with stage 4 lymphoma at just 18, at a time when survival rates were low and patient rights barely recognised, John’s life was changed overnight. But that diagnosis would not define him—it would shape him into a man who would go on to touch countless lives, from hospital wards to international stages.
Born in South Shields, John left school at 17 with few qualifications and fewer prospects. Life was about working in the shipyards and following space-rock legends Hawkwind around the UK. But underneath the surface, something wasn’t right. He was exhausted, rapidly losing weight, and repeatedly told by doctors he was just “depressed.” The truth was far more serious. After collapsing at work, a battery of tests revealed he had cancer—something his doctors and parents initially tried to keep from him.
That betrayal of trust—however well-meaning—marked a turning point. John faced years of intense chemotherapy and radiotherapy, relapsing four times before finally being told there was nothing more that could be done. Yet a final course of palliative chemotherapy triggered a remarkable, unexplained remission. When the doctor told him, “You’re clear,” John describes the moment as the emotional equivalent of winning the lottery. It’s a moment he still relives with deep gratitude.
That gratitude fuelled everything that followed. Deeply inspired by a book sent to him in hospital—Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee—John made a promise that if he survived, he would one day visit the site of Wounded Knee. Years later, he did. Not only that, he was invited to spend time on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation with the Lakota Sioux people who had unknowingly helped him through his illness. They made him an honorary member of the tribal council—a moment he describes as one of the greatest honours of his life.
In the 1980s, John became a father through adoption after his cancer treatment left him infertile. Tragically, at just four years old, his daughter Donna was diagnosed with the same disease—lymphoma. Watching her go through the same brutal treatments he had endured was almost more than he could bear. Doctors eventually told the family there was nothing more they could do. But incredibly, Donna also went into an unexplained remission. She would later go on to represent Great Britain at the World Swimming Championships in New Zealand in 1998, bringing home two silver medals.
The call to give back was irresistible. John returned to education as an adult, gaining the qualifications he’d missed in his youth. He trained as a nurse, and his career soared. He worked across the northern NHS region, including on Ward 38 at Newcastle General Hospital—the very ward where he was once treated. He went on to manage chemotherapy units and ultimately became a Senior Clinical Nurse Specialist in Cancer Services in South Tyneside, the very place where his own diagnosis had first been made.
His passion for music never left him either. A lifelong Hawkwind fan, John eventually joined the band’s road crew, touring with them across the UK. In 2007, at Donnington, he was invited on stage to perform a re-written version of “10 Seconds of Forever,” reframing the original song to reflect the emotional impact of a cancer diagnosis. It was a defining moment, made more powerful by the presence of his soulmate and wife June at the side of the stage.
Despite facing yet another cancer diagnosis later in life—caused by the effects of early treatment—John continues to live with purpose and gratitude. His memoir Shadow of a Survivor is a heartfelt, often humorous, and always honest reflection on a life shaped by illness but never defined by it. It’s a love letter to survivorship, music, family, nursing, resilience—and above all, hope.