Man with terminal brain cancer makes it his ‘purpose in life’ to break record for most money raised by a marathon runner

A man with terminal brain cancer has made it his “purpose in life” to break the world record for the most money raised by a marathon runner, a feat which currently stands at more than £2 million.

Iain Ward, 36, a content creator who lives in Streatham, south London, was diagnosed with glioblastoma – a fast-growing type of cancerous brain tumour – in 2020 after having an MRI scan in 2019 as part of a medical trial.

After always being fit and healthy and having “zero symptoms”, Iain described the discovery as “a freakish amount of luck”, for if he had not been part of the trial, he believes the tumour may have gone undetected.

An active runner, Iain said he has completed 18 marathons since his diagnosis in a bid to break the Guinness World Record for the most money raised for charity by an individual marathon runner – a record which currently stands at £2,330,159.38 and was achieved in 2011.

Iain has shared his journey with more than 14 million followers across his social media platforms under the handle @thekingofchemo, where he documents his extraordinary challenges.

In August 2025, he even completed 32 half-marathons in 32 consecutive days across Ireland’s 32 counties, all while wearing a 32lb weighted vest.

To date, he said he has raised more than £350,000 for numerous charities and has now set his sights on breaking the record for the most money raised by a marathon runner at the New York City Marathon this November, with the aim of “trying to help others”.

Iain told PA Real Life: “It’s been extremely satisfying because I never really had a purpose in my life… and I do now.

“There’s more of a feeling of why I’m doing something and how it actually has a positive effect on the world.

“I just see it as problem-solving where a lot of people are suffering through cancer, and I want to raise money to help that and set a decent example of how important fitness is in general.”

Before his diagnosis, Iain worked as a fitness class instructor and was a keen runner, completing three marathons before starting to run them as his “profession”.

In 2014, after moving to London from High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, he began taking part in paid medical trials to earn some extra money.

Ahead of a schizophrenia trial in autumn 2019, an MRI scan revealed a tumour on his brain.

“It was a freakish amount of luck,” he explained.

“If it was an MRI scan on any other part of my body, it wouldn’t have been detected.

“I had zero symptoms or warning signs.

“Doctors said it was benign to begin with… and then I wasn’t able to do the medical trial which I was very disappointed about.”

Around six months later, scans showed the tumour was growing and, after undergoing brain surgery, Iain was diagnosed with glioblastoma in 2020.

Iain said his doctor told him the average life expectancy is around five years, but they have limited data on what the prognosis is like for someone of his age with no symptoms.

“I could be dead in a year or I could be on the far end of the average life expectancy. It could be up to 10, maybe even 15 years,” he added.

“I didn’t really have time to grieve or get very fearful… it was just such a shock that I couldn’t take it in.”

During the Covid-19 pandemic, Iain launched a YouTube channel to make video game content.

Facing the possibility of hair loss from his cancer treatment, which included chemotherapy and radiotherapy, Iain chose to speak openly about his condition on his channel.

He said: “I thought I might as well raise some money for charity while talking about it.

“I looked up the record for the most money raised running a marathon and decided, ‘Yep, I’ll beat that’.”

According to Guinness World Records, the most money raised for charity by an individual marathon runner is £2,330,159.38, which was set by Steve Chalke, from the UK, who raised the money for Oasis UK by completing the Virgin London Marathon on April 17 2011.

Iain added: “I’ve actually met up with Steve – it’s a title people like to pass over to the next person.

“He gave me loads of advice on how to go about it but he said that if I win it, he’s going to win it back off me!”

In summer 2021, Iain said he ran 52 miles in a “double marathon” on a treadmill in 12 hours.

“It was surprisingly fine,” Iain explained.

“The hardest part would have been how boring it was, because it was on a treadmill, so it was just all day.

“I was having chemotherapy treatment at the time… and around the time of the challenge I was getting sick every 15 minutes, but I was OK on the day.”

He said he managed to raise more than £1,000 and has been determined to do as much fundraising as possible since then.

In 2024, he ran the Boston, London, Austin, Berlin, Chicago and New York City marathons, raising around £100,000.

Iain has been sharing his experiences on social media, where he has built a following of more than 14 million people while raising awareness about the realities of living with a terminal illness.

He also appears in The Endfluencers – a new social documentary by end-of-life charity Marie Curie and health and beauty retailer Superdrug – which highlights individuals nearing the end of their lives who use social media to document their journeys.

He said: “I want to be treated like a normal person… but it’s cool to be able to be a part of a documentary that is going to show the different shades of how people deal with a terminal illness.”

In August 2025, he attempted another challenge – completing a half-marathon in each of Ireland’s 32 counties over 32 consecutive days, wearing a 32lb weighted vest – and from this, he said he raised £7,000 and counting.

“I thought I might have some physical problems during the journey and I didn’t, it was absolutely brilliant,” Iain said.

Since his diagnosis, Iain said he has run 18 marathons and now has four MRI scans a year to “keep an eye on his tumour to see if it has grown”.

He added: “I could potentially go back onto chemo and do more radiation and more brain surgery if it has grown.”

He also said doctors are still uncertain on his exact life expectancy.

Iain has now set his sights on breaking the world record for most money raised by a marathon runner on November 2 2025, while completing the New York City Marathon.

“Even though over several years the world record might not be broken, every single year we’re more likely to break it the following year,” Iain explained.

“I show no signs of stopping or giving up.

“Since I started raising money (in 2020), I’ve raised £350,000.”

While running the marathon, he also hopes to break the Guinness World Record for the most T-shirts worn during a marathon by a male.

The current record is 100, and Iain plans to wear 101 to “put the fun into fundraising”.

Reflecting on his experiences, he said: “It (having cancer) hasn’t really taught me anything new about myself.

“For me, an opportunity was presented, and I guess I’m just trying to push myself to my limits, do something of meaning for myself and, as a side bar, help other people.”