Sir Chris Hoy has said he is putting his faith in medical science to find new treatments to help him live longer.
Doctors estimated the six-time Olympic cycling gold medallist may have less than four years to live after his diagnosis of stage 4 prostate cancer in September 2023.
Hoy, 50, said he wanted to “hang in there” long enough to see new drugs become available that could extend his life.
He said advancements in prostate cancer research and the potential for artificial intelligence (AI) to help develop treatments had given him hope that one day a cure could be found.
“It’s going relatively well and I’m just kind of cracking on with life. Very early on I had to get my head around, and recognise, that you’ve got to have hope,” he said.
“You’ve got to find a way to enjoy the moment and enjoy the day but also put faith in the people that are doing all these incredible things.
“Who knows? There could be an amazing treatment just around the corner if you can hang in there.”
He added: “There are a lot of issues with AI in the future and we have got to manage it well, but one of the real positives of AI has to be in the field of medicine and the rate at which we can develop and optimise new drugs for treatment in the future.”
Hoy said he had been particularly encouraged by an early-stage trial in which a drug for advanced prostate cancer showed “remarkable” results.
The treatment, a type of immunotherapy which harnesses the body’s immune system, was found to shrink tumours or halt their growth.
Hoy delivers the match ball at Murrayfield in February last year after the Guinness Six Nations match against IrelandAlamy
Speaking on his Sporting Misadventures podcast, Hoy added: “Immunotherapy has worked really well with other cancers and it doesn’t damage the other tissues, it only targets the cancer.
“For complicated reasons it hasn’t been possible with prostate cancer but there is a new trial drug which may well have cracked it and it should be available relatively soon.
“By all accounts it’s having remarkable success in terms of the number of patients in the trial who responded well to it.
“Some of the top prostate cancer drug developers are saying that incurable prostate cancer could be a thing of the past in the future.
“How many years away that is I don’t know in terms of becoming standardised treatment.”
Just before Hoy’s tumour was discovered, his wife, Sarra, had undergone scans that would later show she had multiple sclerosis, a degenerative disease.
Hoy with his wife, Sarra Kemp. She has multiple sclerosis, a diagnosis received shortly after Hoy learnt he had cancer
The couple are organising their second Tour De 4 charity cycle challenge, which is being held in Glasgow this September.
More than 5,000 people took part in the inaugural event last year, raising more than £3.1 million for cancer charities.
Hoy broke his right leg in a mountain biking accident in November and was warned it may have to be amputated, but he is back riding after making a remarkable recovery.
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