Drag queen diagnosed with cancer twice in one year says discovery of ‘menace’ alter ego Shanika Sunrise saved their life

A drag queen who was diagnosed with cancer twice in one year after relapsing has said the discovery of their “menace” alter ego Shanika Sunrise saved their life during gruelling treatment.

Jay Swinnerton, 26, a non-binary transfeminine freelance artist who lives in Manchester, was 19 when they were diagnosed with stage 4 Hodgkin lymphoma – an uncommon cancer that develops in the lymphatic system – in March 2017.

Jay underwent chemotherapy immediately and, faced with the inevitable prospect of losing their hair, friends decided to buy them a “lilac wig with bangs” from Luvyababes in Manchester’s Arndale shopping centre – and Shanika Sunrise was born.

“I started to do drag and Shanika Sunrise was this product of my experience and this coping mechanism – I’d even go as far as to say a survival mechanism because it literally got me through my whole experience,” Jay told PA Real Life.

Jay started using their mother’s make-up and “dolling (themself) up”, and every time they went to hospital for treatment, they put nail polish on and wore a “different eyeshadow make-up look” – which the nurses loved.

They were told they had reached remission in September 2017 after having chemotherapy, but in April 2018, almost exactly a year after being first diagnosed, they received the news that they had relapsed and the cancer had spread.

Jay trialled four different drugs, battled sepsis, and underwent a bone marrow transplant in February 2019, before finally reaching remission thanks to a new immunotherapy drug which had been approved on the NHS.

Jay has since done countless gigs as Shanika, toured internationally with RuPaul’s Drag Race stars, and is now being booked as a solo artist for their own shows, which they are extremely proud of.

Reflecting on their experience, Jay said they see their journey as “a book with many chapters” and they feel grateful to have a “nice ending now”.

“It has taken such a long time for me to get here, on a mental and physical level, but I just look back and I see it as this epic novel,” Jay said.

“There were so many curveballs, I was coming into my own in terms of my gender expression and my queerness, and then there was my drag journey – and this gave me the vocabulary to understand and comprehend my experience in a creative way.

“I’m at a stage now where I’m just living my life, and that’s the simplest thing, but you’re in such a horrible situation and you can’t even fathom ever doing anything again, and now I’m doing it with bells on.”

Jay first noticed symptoms – swollen lymph nodes in their neck and feeling “run down” – while studying history at the University of Warwick in September 2016.

They decided to visit their GP, who suggested it may be down to “partying” too much, and Jay pushed their concerns to the back of their mind and carried on with their studies.

As the months went on, Jay said they “ran (themself) into the ground” with their intense schedule – studying, going out with friends, and teaching dance on the side – and an increase in the swelling in their neck prompted another GP visit.

They were referred to University Hospital Coventry in February 2017, where doctors took several vials of blood – and after three biopsies and surgery to remove the lymph nodes, it was revealed Jay had stage 4 Hodgkin lymphoma in March.

“Everyone was devastated, we were all absolutely gutted,” Jay said.

Jay was transferred to specialist cancer centre The Christie in Manchester, where they underwent a scan, and they remember seeing “black blobs” all over their body in the image, showing the cancer was advanced.

They underwent six months of chemotherapy from April 2017, causing nausea, fatigue and hair loss, and it meant they could no longer continue with their university studies – but this is when Shanika was created.

In September 2017, after another scan, Jay was told they were in remission, and said: “I remember having this euphoric feeling of, ‘I did that, nothing is ever going to shake me again’.”

But in February 2018, Jay noticed swelling in their neck again, along with what they believed to be eczema, and a visit to The Christie led to devastating news.

“Like clockwork, it was spooky really because it was almost exactly a year later, I ended up relapsing, and they said, ‘It’s what we call refractory disease’,” Jay said.

“This was obviously pretty hard-hitting… and they said that, ultimately, the end goal was a bone marrow transplant because with refractory lymphoma, it’s not going to go away, it’s a bit of a diva.”

During their second round of treatments, Jay started vlogging their experiences on Instagram, describing it as “season two in the Netflix series” of their life.

They said Hanna Simpson – a lead nurse for teenagers and young adults at The Christie – was instrumental in nurturing their “young queer spirit”, and this strengthened Jay’s desire to beat cancer.

Jay trialled several different drugs and had immunotherapy in November 2018, and while waiting for their bone transplant – which took place in February 2019 – they became a Kiki Queens 2018 finalist performing as Shanika.

Shanika’s USP is that she is a self-made artist who writes, records and produces all her own original music, which she performs live with fierce dance moves.

She typically has long black wavy hair and dons her signature slogan crop top at her performances, and also loves a colourful bodysuit and thigh-high platform heels.

Post-transplant, Jay transferred to study history and Italian at the University of Manchester to “start afresh”.

Looking back now, Jay said making their experience a “piece of performance art” helped to save their life – and they now have dreams of having their own show.

“I thought I was going to die many times, so I just thought, let me camp this up and make something fabulous out of this experience,” they said.

“Drag opens up an avenue for you to be able to live your life in a way that is fluorescent and sparkly and brilliant, in a way that you feel you’re perhaps restricted to live like in your everyday life.

“I feel like a rock star and a superhero in drag.”

Since reaching remission, Jay has achieved a first-class degree from the University of Manchester, wearing a 40-inch wig and lashes to their graduation ceremony, and has released several songs, including one called Directions.

They even went back to The Christie at Christmas 2023 to do a concert for everyone, performing as Shanika Sunrise, with the nurses joining the celebrations.

While it has not been plain sailing, Jay feels “blessed” to be able to carry on with life and perform, and they want to encourage others to “go with whatever sparks joy”.

“I genuinely don’t think I would have made it without her,” Jay said.

“I just saw myself as this conqueror of my experience, I was like a pop star and I was making a film, and it all comes down to this creative way that I tried to process things with.

“You’re pushed to such extremes, both physically and mentally, your mind just goes to places that you didn’t even think were possible prior to having had that experience.

“You’re just blown up like a balloon and you’re just stretched and then afterwards, life is just never the same… but now I know what life is all about. Roll the credits.”