When keen runner Christine Lote began experiencing pain and swelling in her heel, she thought it was nothing more than a sports injury.
Doctors agreed and a diagnosis of tendonitis – inflammation of the tendons – followed. But despite physiotherapy, symptoms persisted for years.
Eventually the 42-year-old was sent for an MRI, where the true cause of her debilitating pain was revealed.
The solicitor was diagnosed with chondrosarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer that affects just 700 Britons every year.
She had been on maternity leave at the time of the news in January 2022, having welcomed her firstborn Sophie just seven months earlier.
‘When you hear the words “you have cancer”, your mind spins and immediately turns to “what does this mean for my life expectancy, am I going to need chemotherapy, am I going to lose my hair?”,’ says Christine.
‘I was also concerned that I had been pregnant while having cancer in my body and if this would have any negative impact on my new baby.’
Christine’s form of cancer doesn’t respond to chemotherapy or radiotherapy, and instead is treated with surgery, so in early 2022 she underwent an operation to remove the mass.
Christine Lote,42, initially thought the pain and swelling in her heel was a sports injury
Christine Lote, a stage 4 cancer patient, speaking with Sir Chris Hoy at the launch of a fitness partnership with PureGym
While she was initially able to return to work and resume life as normal, when she fell pregnant with her second daughter, Chloe, she noticed some swelling in the heel and ankle area.
While she was advised not to have any scans done while pregnant due to the radiation, after welcoming Chloe in February 2023, a scan found the cancer had returned.
Christine’s only option was to have her leg amputated below the knee, a procedure she underwent that June.
She said: ‘At the time, I had a four-month-old baby and an almost two-year-old, my thoughts were ‘how am I going to be the mother I need to be on one leg?
‘I wasn’t even 40 then, so silly things went through my mind like, how do I dress? Am I going to be able to wear high heels again? How will I walk my girls in the pram? Some might say really ridiculous things, but it really worried me.
‘But I knew that if this was what it took for me to see my children grow up and get rid of the cancer, then fine, I had no choice, let’s crack on.’
After a few months Christine began to learn to adapt to her new life, and was receiving three monthly check ups.
Then on her daughter’s third birthday, she got a call that changed everything.
She got the news she had been dreading – doctors had spotted something in her lungs that was concerning, and she was sent for a biopsy, having part of her left lung removed to be sent off for testing.
Almost a year on from the amputation, Christine was delivered another blow: the cancer had spread to her lungs and was now stage four, and incurable.
Christine was diagnosed with chondrosarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer that affects just 700 Britons every year
The mother-of-two fears she is unlikely to live to see her children finish primary school, after being given five years to live ‘to be optimistic’
She said: ‘I’ve still never really got my head around how it starts in the heel of your foot and then ends up in the lungs.
‘I was very surprised because my breathing wasn’t laboured.
‘I didn’t have a cough, and there were literally no symptoms around my lungs.’
Now the mother-of-two fears she is unlikely to live to see her children finish primary school, after being given five years to live ‘to be optimistic’.
Chondrosarcoma is a form of bone cancer that begins in the cartilage cells.
It generally affects adults over the age of 40 – and is more common in men.
The cancer typically begins in the pelvis, thigh bone, shoulder or ribs.
Patients often first notice persistent joint pain and swelling. Sometimes, patients develop unexplained bone fractures.
When caught early, it can often be cured with surgery. But, diagnosed chondrosarcoma, is often incurable.
Since her diagnosis, Christine’s focus has been on making as many memories with her girls as she can – as well as proving to them that she is still capable of achieving noteworthy things, including running a 10k with her prosthetic for Race For Life.
Christine said: ‘As much as I try not to let that timescale of five years define me, it’s always in the back of my mind and every now and again – especially around birthdays and milestones – it heightens and I question ‘is this another year down?’
‘It’s quite unnerving, it can be really overwhelming if you let it be.
‘I have to actively try and quieten the noise around that.’
Christine’s most recent scans have been clear, with another one scheduled for May 2026, leaving her in a stable position – for the time being.
She said: ‘I’m fully aware that you’re only as good as your last scan, so our mentality as a family is to make the most of the good months until such time that things change.’
Christine has focused on making as many memories with her girls as she can – as well as proving to them that she is still capable
Christine says that while her children are unaware of her health issues, she and husband Damien, 44, know a time will come when they will need and deserve some age appropriate answers to any questions they raise.
She said: ‘As far as they’re concerned, I’m pretty present at the moment – I’m not in and out of hospitals, I’m not sick.
‘There might come a time when Sophie’s a bit older that she asks some questions and we shall deal with that when the time comes.’
For now, the mum is determined to enjoy the time she has left with her family.
Christine said: ‘I’m very keen on memory making.
‘I write to my children once a month with a little round-up of what we’ve been doing, so that when I’m not here, they’ve got some idea about the type of person I was as their mummy and what we used to do.
‘Day-to-day, I try not to let the fact that I’ve got cancer overwhelm everything that we do.’
Christine’s New Year’s Resolution for 2026 was to re-learn how to run, having previously relearnt how to walk and cycle – hence her participation in the upcoming 10km run.
She added: ‘First and foremost, I wanted to raise money for Cancer Research as sadly most people are affected either directly or indirectly by cancer.
‘The Race for Life event will bring together people from the cancer community and I wanted to be a part of that.
‘I also want to show my girls that mummy will challenge herself and give new things a go, even if they are a bit tricky.’
- Christine is running the 10k Race for Life in aid of Cancer Research UK. To donate visit https://www.gofundme.com/f/10k-race-for-life-for-cancer-research-uk
