Bryan Rennie never thought cancer would take him to such great heights.
Less than three years after being diagnosed with multiple myeloma, the Huntingdon-born survivor found himself standing on the roof of the Hilton Toronto on July 6. He then rappelled down the 32-story (345-foot) building to raise funds for Myeloma Canada.
The “Throw Bryan off the Hilton” stunt raised $4,410, but Rennie says he is not stopping there. Now living in Apple Hill, Ontario, he is currently raising funds to participate in the Cornwall March for Myeloma, which takes place on September 21.
Rennie was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, which is a cancer of the white blood cells, in March 2022. Though he didn’t realize it, the first sign something was wrong came after his son, Cameron, threw him during a karate demonstration and he landed hard on his shoulder. “It hurt,” he says. “And then for the next couple of months, it just wouldn’t heal.” Around this time, he also noticed something seemed off with his hip.
Eventually, after seeing a physiotherapist, Rennie was told to get an x-ray and a CT scan, which revealed he had lesions on his left humerus, a couple of ribs, and a shoulder blade. He was sent for a larger scan, and while out that afternoon, he received a call from the radiologist imploring him to get to a hospital, because an egg-sized lesion on his left femur could snap his leg at any second.
The next day, Rennie was officially diagnosed, and things moved quickly from there. His team of doctors decided the best option was to delay chemotherapy and operate on his leg first. An intramedullary rod was inserted into his leg, which would allow him to remain active, and he began treatment. At one appointment, Rennie’s doctor noticed he was wearing a Spartan Race shirt (Spartan Races are long-distance extreme runs with obstacles) and asked when his next race was scheduled to take place.
Rennie says this question propelled him through four rounds of chemo and a stem-cell transplant. Within a year, he ran his first 10-kilometre race. Last year he ran four Spartan Races, and he added an additional two this season, including his 50th race coming in October.
Rennie is now participating in a clinical trial with the Ottawa Hospital, and everything is going well. He says it is important to remember that it is not all doom and gloom. Life expectancy for multiple myeloma used to be measured in months, he says; but now, doctors have no idea how long patients might live because new therapies are constantly emerging.
This is why Rennie says he is so dedicated to fundraising. “Everybody is always looking for research funds, but the reason that people are able to rappel off roofs with this cancer is because the research funds are having a real and significant impact.”