WHEN Alex Collier began suffering pain in his leg after returning from a skiing holiday, cancer was the last thing anyone suspected.
A year later, he was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of bone cancer, and in March, he died aged just 25.
Now, as Sarcoma Awareness Month nears its conclusion, his family have opened up to the JEP in the hope that sharing his story will encourage fit and healthy young people, parents and doctors to ask one simple question when symptoms don’t go away: “Could it be cancer?”
Alex, who had never skied before, was described by his family as “a natural”, completing the family holiday in February 2023 without falling once.
It was shortly after that holiday that his family – mum Jackie, dad John and younger brother Ben – believe the first signs started to appear.
Upon Alex’s return home, he began experiencing occasional pain above his left knee.
Alex visited his GP several times and was treated with anti-inflammatory medication and exercises, as his symptoms were thought to be musculoskeletal.
“In Alex’s case, he was just having occasional pain during the day and night,” the family explained.
Because of his age and active lifestyle, including his recent skiing holiday and physically demanding jobs, cancer never crossed anyone’s mind, and his symptoms were not immediately linked to the disease.
Nearly a whole year passed before Alex was finally diagnosed with spindle cell sarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer, in February 2024, when he was aged 23.
Symptoms of spindle cell sarcoma can include persistent bone pain, swelling or tenderness, unexplained fractures, difficulty moving a nearby joint, fatigue and a general feeling of being unwell.
Following a biopsy in Birmingham in February 2024, Alex began chemotherapy in Southampton.
The Colliers said he became seriously unwell during treatment, repeatedly developing infections after becoming neutropenic.
Just weeks later, his weakened leg fractured as he was getting out of bed.
He was treated at Jersey General Hospital before being flown by air ambulance to Southampton to continue his care.
After delays caused by further infections, surgeons in Birmingham removed the tumour in May 2024, replacing much of his femur, his knee and part of his tibia with titanium implants.
Chemotherapy resumed after the operation and, by October 2024, Alex had been told he was in remission.
“We were so happy,” the Colliers recalled.
But the relief was short-lived.
A CT scan in December revealed the cancer was still there, and doctors told Alex he had between six months and two years to live.
Despite radiotherapy to ease his pain, the disease spread to his pelvis, lymph nodes, liver, spine and lungs.
Alex spent his final weeks at Jersey Hospice, where his family said staff “couldn’t have been kinder”.
He died in March after what his family described as a “very brave battle”.
The Colliers say Alex’s experience highlights a wider issue around awareness and diagnosis delays in young people, where symptoms can easily be mistaken for sports injuries or other common conditions.
“Too many young lives are being lost to cancer,” they said.
“In some cases, if an earlier diagnosis had been made, lives could have been saved.”
They are calling for greater awareness of cancers affecting children, teenagers and young adults, and want more education in schools about the warning signs.
“More awareness among parents, teachers and young adults needs to be raised,” they said, adding that thyroid, blood, bone and brain cancers are among the diseases that have affected young Islanders in recent years.”
The Colliers believe that education around warning signs could make a life-saving difference and are now urging local schools to consider cancer awareness in PSHE lessons.
Alex’s family said he was passionate about ensuring others learned from his experience.
“He was keen that people are made aware that, even at his age, bone cancer is a thing, and that the symptoms were only intermittent pain in his leg during the day and night,” they said.
They also want young people and parents to feel more confident in questioning persistent symptoms.
“If a pain is continuous or occasional, tiredness, weight change, mole changes, and it doesn’t go away after initial treatment, ask the doctor: ‘Could it be cancer?'”
“It more than likely won’t be, but it could save a life if it is.”
Since Alex’s diagnosis, the Colliers have also worked to raise both awareness and funds to support other families affected by cancer.
As chemotherapy caused Alex to lose his hair, younger brother Ben had his head shaved in solidarity, raising money for Teenage Cancer Trust, CLIC Sargent (Jersey) and Jersey Cancer Relief. He also donated his hair to the Little Princess Trust.
John, meanwhile, completed gruelling endurance challenges, including a 106-kilometre ultra walk around the Isle of Wight and a 100-mile walk around Les Quennevais Cycle Track, raising almost £20,000 for the Royal Orthopaedic Charity and CLIC Sargent (Jersey).
Alongside the fundraising efforts, Jackie has focused on raising awareness of cancers affecting children, teenagers and young adults.
Working with CLIC Sargent (Jersey) and Teenage Cancer Trust, she has shared Alex’s story in the hope of encouraging earlier diagnosis and helping other families facing a similar journey.
The family said they hope those efforts, alongside sharing Alex’s story, will encourage others to recognise the signs of cancer earlier and support families facing similar journeys.
Alex is not the only young Islander whose symptoms were initially thought to be sports-related.
14-year-old Callum McNulty, a “cheeky” and “incredibly bright” teenager, who died from Ewing sarcoma – a rare type of cancer which forms in bone or soft tissue – in 2022, also experienced months of pain before his cancer was diagnosed.
Symptoms of Ewing sarcoma can include persistent bone pain, swelling or tenderness, a lump near the affected bone, reduced movement if the tumour is close to a joint, unexplained fractures, tiredness, weight loss and, in some cases, a fever.
Doctors initially believed Callum’s symptoms were related to the strenuous sports and activities he took part in, and no further tests were carried out.
After waking one morning in September 2014 unable to walk, Callum was flown to Southampton, where surgeons discovered and removed a tumour on his spine.
He went into remission for 18 months before the cancer returned and Callum later passed away in July 2022.
Since losing Callum, his mother, Joanne McNulty, has dedicated herself to raising awareness of childhood and young adult cancers in his memory.
She is also an ambassador for CLIC Sargent (Jersey), a local children’s cancer charity which supported both Callum and Alex, as well as their families, throughout their treatment.
As well as sharing Callum’s story, Joanne has raised thousands of pounds for bone cancer causes and helped improve facilities for young cancer patients in Jersey, including transforming the teenage and young adult room in the Oncology Department into a more welcoming space for patients and their families.
While their stories might differ, both Alex and Callum’s families said they both sent an important message that pain in otherwise fit and healthy young Islanders in particular should not always be assumed to be related to sporting or activity strain.
They hope that, by sharing their stories, others will learn from their experience, and seek medical advice if symptoms persist – even if cancer seems unlikely – so they do not have to endure the same heartbreak that they did.
“Knowledge is the key – know the symptoms,” they said.
“It more than likely won’t be cancer, but it could save a life if it is.”
