Sumner ‘stands up and fights’ cancer

Atune that inspired the All Whites at the 1982 World Cup finals has become their captain Steve Sumner’s theme song as he strives to beat a serious form of prostate cancer. The 60-year-old All Whites great is appealing to men to get regular rectal examinations because ‘‘a blood test isn’t enough’’.

Family support is ‘‘rallying’’ Sumner as he faces CT and bone scans next week to see whether the cancer has spread to his lymph nodes and bones. He’s also been buoyed by messages of support from All Whites buddies.

John Adshead, who coached the All Whites in Spain and who has survived prostate cancer, sent Sumner a heartfelt message containing the lyrics of a song the 1982 World Cup team sang"as a battle cry’’ in the team bus before games.

The Toreador Song, from the musical Carmen, ends with the line: ‘‘Stand up and fight like hell’’.

Sumner has taken that mantra to heart. He sings the chorus ‘till I run out of voice’’ on his daily walks in Christchurch’s Hagley Park.

He’s determined to be around to walk daughter Tori up the aisle and to see his grandchildren grow up.

Sumner was a leader, not a follower, on the football field and he now wants to use his personal experience to inspire other men to get regular prostate checks.

One of the toughest players to have worn the All Whites’ shirt, Sumner said men shouldn’t be shy about having the rectal test. He’s had three in five weeks.

‘‘If your doctor won’t poke his finger up your bum, get one who will. The PSA [blood] test isn’t enough.’’

Sumner had progressively found it ‘‘harder to pee’’, but he had no family history of prostate cancer and had had PSA tests and a digital exam in the past without any cause for concern.

He put his problem down to ‘‘getting a bit older’’ and thought: ‘‘She’ll be right’’, though he did wonder if he had an enlarged prostate.

It wasn’t until he was up in Auckland for the Fifa under-20 World Cup tournament final in July with old mates Adshead and Brian Turner that he knew something serious was happening with his waterworks.

Three times, within a matter of minutes, he had to get Turner to pull the car over so he could go to the toilet, lest he had a sudden accident. The last time it happened both Brian and John said ‘you’ve got to get that looked at’,’’ Sumner said.

So Sumner, who runs a successful seafood exporting business, sought medical help on his return to Christchurch.

A digital examination led to his doctor arranging an urgent appointment with a Christchurch hospital specialist.

Sumner had 12 biopsies – ‘‘six on either side of the prostate’’. ‘‘All 12 came back positive.’’

His Gleason rating — a test to assess the severity of prostate cancer — was nine out of 10. His doctor said he only saw five to 10 nine ratings a year.

Sumner says a prostatectomy isn’t an option in his case. The CT scans will determine what happens next.

But he will ‘‘fight all the way’’ because he owes it to ‘‘ [wife] Jude and the family’’.

His family rallied to his support. Youngest son Dean, 25, flew in from Sydney on the day of his dad’s diagnosis to join his Christchurch-based brother Carlos, 32, and sister Tori, 29, at Sumner’s side. Oldest son Paul, 35, and his wife Tarryn arrived from Sydney the next day.

Sumner said it could have been a depressing time, ‘‘if it hadn’t been for Jude and my kids’’. ‘‘That gave me a real lift. It was sad to see the kids upset, but it it was amazing to see then enjoying each other’s company.’’

Sumner said daughter Tori, a Christchurch lawyer, kept saying repeatedly: ‘‘Dad, I want you here

Dad, I want you here to walk me down the aisle. Steve Sumner’s daughter Tori

to walk me down the aisle.’’

Carlos Sumner and his partner, Hannah, have a 16-month-old son and another baby on the way, and grandfather Steve wants to see them grow up.

The Sumner siblings have been researching prostate cancer treatments, and Sumner is prepared ‘‘to do anything my kids want’’.

Well-wishers have alerted him to any number of potential cures, including bear bile and traditional Chinese remedies. He’s taking supplements and herbal potions, including one he’s dubbed ‘‘witches’ brew’’, and has cut meat, butter, cheese and eggs from his diet.

Alcohol’s also out and so is coffee and tea. ‘‘It’s green tea, for me now.’’

He’s on hormone treatment programme which ‘‘strips out the testosterone’’ and is supposed to ‘‘remove the desire, apparently’’.

But Sumner hasn’t lost his sense of humour. An oncologist told him of three patients in Melbourne, ‘‘who were disappointed that they didn’t care whether their AFL teams won or lost’’.

Sumner laughed, and said: ‘‘I’m going to finish up a better person.’’

Now, the ex-All White is employing the same positive attitude, drive and determination evident in his football career.

He’s at the gym daily, including ‘‘30 minutes on the [stationary] bike’’ and is also walking up stairs at Cunningham House in the Botanic Gardens each day, as he seeks to bounce back from recent hip and knee replacement operations, legacies of his combative playing days.

Sumner’s held in high regard in the football community, nationally and internationally. (He won the Fifa Order of Merit award in 2010).

Brian Turner, Bobby Almond, Steve Wooddin, Adrian Elrick, Sam Malcolmson, Frank van Hattum, Barry Pickering, Grant Turner and Buzzer Mackay from the Class of 82, and assistant-coach Kevin Fallon have been in touch with their old skipper.

Sumner is also humbled by the number of messages he’s had from well-wishers, including comedian Mike King and the Mad Butcher, rugby league ambassador Sir Peter Leitch, a bladder cancer survivor. Leitch is a patron of Blue September, the prostate cancer awareness foundation, and Sumner is happy to publicise the cause.

The man who scored 27 times for the All Whites has a new goal. Health awareness.

‘‘Get checked,’’ is his plea to other middle-aged men, advising them to get tests, at least once a year, ‘‘if not, six-monthly’’. ‘‘I really want to get that message out there.’’

Sometimes, Sumner feels he’s ‘‘fighting the invisible man’’, but he’s determined to remain positive. ‘‘I feel fantastic,’’ he says.

He’s been whitebaiting with his sons and is literally smelling the flowers on his daily walks in the ‘‘Garden of Eden’’ at the Botanic Gardens, where there’s always that World Cup song in his head.

‘‘Stand up and fight, until you hear the bell Stand toe to toe, Trade blow for blow, Keep punching’ till you make yer punches tell,

Show that crowd what you know! Until you hear that bell, That final bell, Stand, up and fight like hell!"