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Julian’s cancer journey took unexpected turns, but with the unwavering support of loved ones, his medical team and strong Christian faith, he is grateful to be standing here today with a new perspective on life.

IT STARTED WITH A SEEMINGLY MINOR SYMPTOM. While driving, Julian felt an unusual discomfort — as though his pants were too tight. Alarmed by this sensation, the strategy consulting director turned to the internet for answers, and the doomsday scenarios he found pushed him to see a doctor. Within five days, he underwent surgery to remove the right side of his testes. He had been diagnosed with Stage 1 testicular seminoma, a type of testicular cancer.

The diagnosis in July 2022 was a shock. “I was caught off guard, overwhelmed and afraid,” says Julian. “Testicular cancer was just something that had never crossed my mind.”

Fortunately, the surgery was successful. Since the cancer had been detected early and remained isolated, Julian did not require chemotherapy or radiotherapy. After a four-week recovery period, he returned to work.

Then, in December 2023, a routine blood test followed by CT and PET scans revealed devastating news: The cancer had returned. This time, it had spread to the lymph nodes in his abdomen, chest and neck, advancing to Stage 3 metastatic testicular seminoma.

Guided by Compassionate Care

“It was terrible timing,” recalls Julian, now 37. “I was already in holiday mode, winding down from work and preparing to return home to Melbourne for Christmas.”

An Australian who has lived in Singapore for most of the past decade with his Singaporean fiancée, Crystal, and their Labrador, Rylie, Julian had to urgently make a seemingly trivial decision with potentially life-changing implications: Stay in Singapore for treatment or return to Melbourne.

“My dad passed away during cancer treatment in 2013, so I wanted to be near my mum and sister if this was not going to end well for me,” he explains. “I also wondered if cancer care in Melbourne might be better.”

A creature of habit, Julian chose to remain in Singapore. “Nothing beats being able to sleep in your own bed,” he says. His mother flew in from Melbourne for seven weeks, and his younger sister joined him for a month, bringing her newborn and husband.

A Shared Path to Healing

As Julian prepared to undergo chemotherapy, the gravity of his condition forced a profound change in his life perspective. “Stage 3 is super serious. The chance of not making it out was very real and terrifying,” he shares. “But as the news set in and I came to terms with the diagnosis, I had to accept that I was not in control of my life and there was nothing I could do. For the first time in my life, I was forced to rely purely on faith, and in the strangest way, this brought a great sense of calm.”

That calm was tested as chemotherapy took a toll, leaving him mentally foggy and physically drained. Simple conversations became challenging, and frustration set in as he struggled to connect his thoughts.

Fortunately, weekly sessions with a therapist who had personally experienced cancer helped. He also found unexpected solace at the clinic. The environment was warm and welcoming, and the nurses’ gentle and kind demeanours helped him through each session.

Beyond the care of the nurses, Julian discovered companionship in an unexpected connection. Early in his treatment, his doctor mentioned a young man with a similar diagnosis about to start the same chemotherapy regimen. “When he came in for his first session, I was there,” Julian recalls. “You could hear the worry in his voice and the questions his parents were asking.”

Recognising him, Julian reached out. “I said ‘I am going through the same thing; feel free to reach out if you want to have a chat or if I can help with anything’,” he says. “He ended up becoming a part of my chemotherapy experience. Walking into the clinic, I’d expect to see him just as I expected to be traumatised by the IV drip each morning.”

Although their conversations were brief — both were too drained to engage deeply — they exchanged smiles and small talk, sharing how chemotherapy was affecting them. “I went from playing sports three to four times a week to not being able to manage a 10-minute walk.” His younger companion, by contrast, regularly attempted push-ups or treadmill runs.

But those differences did not matter. “I’d look at him, 10 years younger, and then at the older patients around us, some in their 60s or 70s,” Julian recalls. “Each of us had our own struggles. It reminded me to be grateful for my own experience and that it could have been a lot worse.”

Accepting Life’s Uncertainties

In March last year, Julian was officially declared in remission. He continues to visit his doctor every four months for check-ups and scans.

His advice to others facing cancer treatment: Everyone’s experience is different, and worst-case scenarios do not always materialise. “I expected to end up in the emergency room and vomit daily after watching YouTube videos of patients going through chemo,” he says. “When I told my doctor, she laughed and told me to stop watching them. In the end, I didn’t throw up at all — except when I caught the flu!”

To cope, Julian focuses on gratitude and hope. “It was important for me to cut out any negative energy,” he says. “During chemo, I wrote a daily journal entry, which Crystal shared with people asking how I was doing. That forced me to be positive and find things to be thankful for, no matter how small. Even on tough days, I managed to scatter in a few jokes and find moments of humour.”

More than anything, cancer has taught him that life’s uncertainties are unavoidable. He says, “The biggest challenge that haunts me every day is: Am I doing enough to prevent the cancer from coming back? Am I doing something wrong that could increase the risk of a recurrence? There’s no blueprint or instructions for avoiding it. I wish there were…”

To manage these worries, Julian leans on faith, trusting in a higher power and believing there is a bigger plan for his life, while finding comfort in the notion that seemingly bad things happen for good reasons. He says, “I’m constantly working on being more mindful, reminding myself to live in the present and reassuring myself that tomorrow will play out according to a broader purpose.”

“I’m constantly working on being more mindful, reminding myself to live in the present and reassuring myself that tomorrow will play out according to a broader purpose.”
Julian, Stage 3 testicular cancer survivor