In September, Mark Harding from Talgarth, known as ‘Tiny’ to the local community, was given the devastating news that he had prostate cancer and shortly after told that the cancer had spread to his lymph nodes and his bones.

He is now raising awareness of the illness and hopes his story will encourage others to get tested.

A popular figure in the area, Mark is men’s senior team manager for Talgarth Town Football Club and is now raising money for Prostate Cancer Research.

After a visit to the doctors, Mark had blood tests that revealed he had prostate specific antigen (PSA) levels of 400. PSA should be 5 or below to be considered safe.

Telling his story further, Mark said: “I went to Hereford County Hospital to the urology department to have further tests and meet a consultant.

“What a fantastic team from reception to the nurse I saw. The nurse gave uncensored and honest answers to all the questions I asked, very caring and compassionate and professional. Straight to the point, which was really refreshing.

“More bloods were taken for the urology team to look at, followed by an embarrassing examination... but this lasted two minutes, which was nothing compared to the grand scheme of things.

“After the biopsy, the first treatment began. This was hormones in tablet form, with injections to follow at a later date. The next stage of my journey was a CT scan.

“I was prepped and had four anaesthetic injections, and the probe inserted... not a comfortable feeling, but needs must.”

Mark then went onto the strongest dose of hormone injections as his PSA level had risen from 400 to 739 within a week.

Following results from a CT scan, Mark then found out that the cancer had spread to his bones.

Mark’s message to men is: “Don’t hang about and be a statistic. If you don’t feel right get yourself sorted. You owe it to your family, your friends and yourself.”

To raise awareness, Mark is having a Prostate Cancer UK tattoo done on December 18. This tattoo is being done at no cost by John Sheppard and Sarah Sheppard of Twinkles and Ink.

A JustGiving page has been set up and can be found here.

The NHS website states that prostate cancer does not usually cause any symptoms until the cancer has grown large enough to put pressure on the tube that carries urine from the bladder out of the penis (urethra).

Symptoms of prostate cancer can include:

• needing to pee more frequently, often during the night

• needing to rush to the toilet

• difficulty in starting to pee (hesitancy)

• straining or taking a long time while peeing

• weak flow

• feeling that your bladder has not emptied fully

• blood in urine or blood in semen

These symptoms do not always mean you have prostate cancer. Many men's prostates get larger as they get older because of a non-cancerous condition called benign prostate enlargement.

Signs that the cancer may have spread include bone and back pain, a loss of appetite, pain in the testicles and unintentional weight loss.

For more information visit the Prostate Cancer UK website and the Cancer Research UK website.