Wales fan with terminal cancer hopes to see Euros

Matt is hoping Wales can make Euro 2024 – and that he’s well enough to see them there

A Wales fan with terminal cancer hopes he is well enough to travel to see his nation play in one more tournament ahead of their crucial final qualifier.

Matt Collins, 35, was diagnosed with glioblastoma in October and given between 12 and 18 months to live.

He said he had been “overwhelmed” by the support from the football community.

“I felt like the Red Wall was united, and they didn’t want to lose me, this key brick in the wall.”

Wales’ qualification hopes for Euro 2024 in Germany hang in the balance ahead of their final Group D qualifier against Turkey, which Matt is hoping to be well enough to attend.

A draw with Armenia on Saturday means Wales must beat Turkey and hope Croatia slip up. If not they will face a tough play-off campaign.

Matt, from Aberdare, Rhondda Cynon Taf, has been fundraising for a treatment which can help prolong his life and keep him well enough to follow his team to Germany next summer – should the team make it.

Comedian and podcaster Elis James has helped, saying Matt’s story resonated with him.

“When I realised he was from south Wales, and supported Wales, loved the Manics, I just instantly felt like I knew him,” he said.

“I just couldn’t imagine the stress he was under, being ill and having to cope with the day-to-day difficulties of undergoing cancer treatment, and then having to raise money.

“I couldn’t stop thinking about it and I found it unbearable,” he said.

Matt (right) says he was not able to go out to France for the Euros or the World Cup in Qatar, and hopes he will be well enough to attend the Euros

Glioblastomas are grade 4 brain tumours.

According to Cancer Research UK, they are the most common type of cancerous brain tumour in adults, and remain the biggest cancer killer of children and adults under the age of 40.

Matt said a vaccine, DCVax-L, was not a cure, but could give him time.

It is the same treatment 23-year-old Laura Nuttal’s family raised money for – a treatment in which a personalised vaccine is made from each patient’s own dendritic cells.

They are convinced this helped to prolong Laura’s life.

Matt said: “On average it extends peoples lives by three months, and although it costs £250,000, I can’t put a price on the time that this allows me to have with my family and friends.

“So whether it’s three months or three years, I don’t know, but time is so precious to me now.”

Elis added: “He is asking for time, not a cure, and when you put it in those terms, it is such a visceral request.

“If I can help amplify his voice, and get people to bung a fiver in, and get him over the line, then that will be a fantastic thing.”

Matt had an operation to remove the tumour, and is currently undergoing chemotherapy and radiotherapy

Matt said it would be “everything” to get the money for the vaccine.

“I know there are no guarantees, but the hope keeps me going, and gives me that little bit of promise.”

Jade Passey from the Brain Tumour Charity said there was no cure for glioblastoma, but the vaccine offered people more time.

“There is a poor prognosis anyway for people with this type of cancer, on average it’s 12 to18 months, so to add three months, this is quite significant.

“It gives people more options other than chemotherapy and surgery.”

Matt (right) says Wales fans are very special

Matt said he was devastated when he first got the diagnosis, but he also felt “blessed”.

“I wrote a letter to my friends and family, stuff that I would have never said to them, and I was conscious I may not get a chance to say it, so it really focused my mind on what I want to do with the time I have and who I want to spend time with, he said.

“Because now, I have to fit my life in a very short timeframe, and living by six-month plans, and if I get past six months, then I’ll plan for the next.”

Matt added seeing the football community, particularly the Red Wall, support him was “unbelievable”.

“Football to me has always been more than just the game, it’s been about the community, the culture, the language, and I have always felt like I belong to something, I feel like they are my people, especially after Elis (James) did that video.”

“It was so powerful, it just felt like the country was behind me.”