Alan Hobson
Cancer Survivor


In August 2000, at the age of 42, Alan was diagnosed with cancer of the blood, acute myeloid leukemia (AML), and given less than a year to live. At the time of his diagnosis, 90 percent of the cells in his bone marrow were cancerous. The three-year survival rate for those diagnosed with AML is only 15 percent.

Alan was not to be deterred. Thanks to some of the hard-won lessons he learned on Everest, he endured three punishing rounds of week-long, 24-hour continuous chemotherapy that quickly put his leukemia into remission. Then, thanks to the miracles of modern medicine, on November 15, 2000, he received a successful adult blood cell transplant from his donor brother, Eric. Today, Alan has regained 100 percent of the fitness he had prior to his last Everest expedition and has been cancer-free for over five years. He is one of less than a dozen people ever to achieve an elite level of fitness after a blood transplant for leukemia and is officially medically cured. His powerful personal messages about life, death, tenacity and triumph help audiences scale their own “Inner Everests.”

“To say that I’m happy to be here would be a huge understatement,” he says. “I’m thrilled to be here. Every day is not only a gift. In my case, it’s a bonus.”

Alan and his former wife, Cecilia, have written a landmark new book about their cancer experience. Climb Back from Cancer – Introducing The 10 Tools of Triumph for Survivors and Caregivers is both a gripping true adventure story and a powerful tool kit for triumph for patients, survivors and caregivers. A portion of the revenues from Alan's speaking presentations is to be contributed to The Climb Back from Cancer Foundation to help other cancer patients, survivors and caregivers climb back to better lives. The foundation is helping to finance the development of The Climb Back from Cancer Protocol™, a remarkable new system of mild individualized physical activity survivors are using to dramatically reduce chronic fatigue – the biggest single challenge survivors face. The protocol was developed based on Alan’s personal experiences in climbing back from cancer. His vision is to introduce The Climb Back from Cancer Protocol™ worldwide through virtual Climb Back from Cancer Centers and positively affect the lives of millions of people.