Scottish golfer running world-famous marathon for cancer charity despite his own diagnosis

An avowedly private individual, he has also decided to speak about his illness in order to raise awareness of prostate cancer.

In the London Marathon next month there will be hundreds running to raise money for cancer-related charities. Paul Moultrie of Troon will be one of them, except that he is quite different from most participants because he is running WITH cancer.

Just six days before the Marathon, 59-year-old Moultrie, founder of the Mind Body Golf fitness consultancy, will complete a program of radiotherapy to treat his prostate cancer, a course that he began at the Beatson West of Scotland Cancer Centre in Glasgow. He is already undergoing hormone therapy to treat his cancer, and will probably have to do so for the next two years or so – “it’s not a walk in the park,” Moultrie said. “I’ve put on tummy fat and get hot flushes which are things I’d never dreamed I would get.”

To cap it all, while on holiday with his wife Gillian in Tenerife last month, Scottish seniors golf internationalist Moultrie tripped and fell heavily, sustaining a painful injury to his hand and wrist that saw the medics on the island fit him with a brace. It was only when he got home and was advised to go to A & E at University Hospital Crosshouse that x-rays showed he had fractured the important scaphoid bone that needs time to heal and no sharp jolts.

“That was me unable to run for four weeks at least,” explained Moultrie, “but I have taken to walking on the beaches around here to keep jarring to a minimum and have been averaging 10 to 12 miles per outing. I must have walked hundreds of miles already and the other day I walked 14 miles.

“I had never fallen in my life and it was just my bad luck that it happened in the middle of training for the marathon.”

Many other individuals would have called it day and quit training, but in a remarkable show of determination, Moultrie has declared that, even if he has to walk part of the course, he will complete the London Marathon for the fourth time.

His family has had a brush with cancer before, his mother Elizabeth dying of it, and now Gillian and their two grown-up children have rallied round to support Moultrie in his huge task of beating his own cancer and running the London Marathon to raise money for Prostate Cancer UK.

An avowedly private individual, he has also decided to speak about his illness in order to raise awareness of prostate cancer which will affect one in eight men, with Scots more likely than others in the rest of the UK to die from the disease because it was not detected early enough.

It was the realization that six of his friends from the golfing world had been diagnosed with prostate cancer that made the super-fit Moultrie ask his doctor for a PSA (prostate-specific antigen) test which showed he had six or seven times the levels deemed normal. Further tests confirmed he had prostate cancer.

“It was last June and I had none of the usual symptoms so I was asked why I wanted the PSA test,” Moultrie recalled. “I’m glad I insisted as the earlier the cancer is detected the better your chance of surviving it.

“I must commend all the NHS staff that have been dealing me with treatment. They have been absolutely brilliant.

“The same goes for my trainer Gil Stevenson, who has been a tower of strength.”

A well-known member of the Scottish Seniors Golfing Society, Moultrie has the backing of his fellow golfers and with their help has already exceeded his personal £5,000 target for fundraising for Prostate Cancer UK by running the London Marathon – he completed the marathon three times some years ago, and knows it will be more difficult at the age of 59, but his mental approach could not be better and golf has played a huge part in that as has Pilates.

Moultrie says he wasn’t a very good golfer but his record belies that. As a junior, men’s and now senior player, the Royal Troon member has competed successfully at club, county, national and international level and last year represented Scotland in the R & A Home Internationals at West Kilbride Golf Club.

Still working as a chartered quantity surveyor, Moultrie was joined by his wife Gillian in taking up Pilates. An optometrist by profession, Gillian decided to become a full-time Pilates instructor and her husband also gained qualifications, both trained by the world-renowned Body Control Pilates organization.

Mixing Pilates with the Mind Factor systems devised by the famed performance coach Karl Morris, Moultrie created his own ‘Inner Caddie’ program with which he aims to help golfers help themselves to a better game, especially extending the playing days of seniors.

“It’s our age group in Scotland that must become more aware of prostate cancer,” said Moultrie. “It’s a message I want to spread and I hope to do that by running the London Marathon.”

You can find Paul Moultrie’s page here.

Saints select Foster Moreau for Ed Block Courage Award

The New Orleans Saints recognized tight end Foster Moreau with the 2023 Ed Block Courage Award after he overcame Hodgkin’s lymphoma:

This is cool: The New Orleans Saints recognized tight end Foster Moreau as their recipient for the 2023 Ed Block Courage Award after he overcame Hodgkin’s lymphoma. This award, the Saints said in a statement, was “created in honor of the former head athletic trainer of the Baltimore Colts to annually recognize one player from every NFL team who best exemplifies a commitment to sportsmanship and courage.”

All 32 teams select a recipient for the award via vote, and Moreau was an easy fit. His perseverance in the face of adversity is inspiring. That he was able to overcome a battle with cancer and quickly return to the field is mighty impressive.

Moreau, 26, is a New Orleans native who starred at Jesuit High School before his four-year run with the LSU Tigers. He was teammates with Saints quarterback Derek Carr on the Raiders and teamed up with him again this season, catching 18 passes for 164 yards and a touchdown.

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Stanford’s Play for Her campaign, dedicated to Cal coach Nancy McDaniel raises money for breast cancer research

The campaign has raised more than $150,000 toward breast cancer research.

Nancy McDaniel found herself back in a hospital bed in July, battling cancer for a second time, and realized that she needed to get moving again. It started with a short walk down the hall.

“Anybody who would come visit, I would say, you have to walk me,” said McDaniel, the longtime Cal women’s golf coach, with a laugh.

At home, friends would come in the morning, at noon and at 5 o’clock to walk with her to the end of the street, and eventually, around the block. The walking helped her physically, but the connection meant everything.

That healing connection has been magnified throughout the country in the form of a fundraiser organized by one of McDaniel’s former players and current head coach at Stanford, Anne Walker.

So far, the Play For Her campaign, tied to this week’s Stanford Intercollegiate, has raised more than $150,000 toward breast cancer research. One of the longest-running tournaments in college golf, the Oct. 20-22 event is hosted by Dr. Condoleezza Rice, who lost her own mother, Angelena, to breast cancer in 1985.

McDaniel cried when Walker called to ask if they could dedicate this year’s event to her. Funds will go directly to McDaniel’s oncologist, Dr. Hope Rugo, and her research at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center.

“We have 120 women in the field,” said Walker. “Statistically, one in eight women get diagnosed in their lifetime. You do the quick math on that … 15 kids in the field are going to battle breast cancer in their lifetime. So if we can educate them and make them more aware, maybe of those 15, a couple more will have better outcomes because they’ve had earlier intervention.”

First diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015, McDaniel was high-fiving with her doctor last June about being cancer-free. Weeks later, she found out the cancer had returned in her stomach.

Nancy McDaniel enjoys a round of golf with her husband Jay and their kids Molly (24) and Tyler (26). (courtesy photo)

McDaniel, a 56-year-old mother of two, started chemotherapy again in August and took a leave of absence from coaching. She’s scheduled to return to work on Nov. 1.

Associate coach Beverly Terry has taken over the reins in the meantime, with Katie Mitchell helping onsite at tournaments. Husband Jay, head professional at Claremont Country Club, helps out as a volunteer assistant, in addition to anchoring her support system.

“(Bev) is just a poster coach for compassion,” said McDaniel of Terry, now in her ninth season with the Bears.

Cal coach Nancy McDaniel played college golf at Washington for longtime coach Mary Lou Mulflur, now in her 41st year of coaching. (courtesy Washington athletics)

McDaniel was part of Washington coach Mary Lou Mulflur’s first recruiting class in the mid-1980s, earning All-American status and competing on professional tours around the world before becoming the founding head coach at Cal in 1994.

“I would take a thousand just like her in a heartbeat,” said Mulflur, who donated a sizable check to the Play for Her campaign.

McDaniel doesn’t want her players or her 24-year-old daugther, Molly, to have to worry about breast cancer. But she also wants them to understand the importance of being an advocate in their own health journey. To pay attention to toxins in their food, in cleaning products and in what they put on their bodies. And to stay ahead of screenings and self-tests.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and McDaniel wants the next generation to understand and embrace the platform they have around breast cancer and other important issues.

“This takes courage,” she notes, “and it is your opportunity to affect the bigger picture.”

Washington assistant coach Anna Temple chose to play for McDaniel at Cal because she wanted to get better. She knew McDaniel would create an environment that would challenge, and she learned to appreciate that even more when she returned to Cal to work for McDaniel as an assistant coach.

Now that she’s working alongside Mulflur at Washington, Temple sees where much of what has been passed down to her got started. The connection carries on through the generations.

This week at Stanford, all generations are working toward one goal that pushes beyond the scorecard.

“Golf is a very tight-knit community,” said Temple. “It’s not surprising to me at all that Anne is using this event for a purpose that’s bigger than all of us.”

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Former Alabama and current NFL All-Pro opens up about losing his mother to cancer

Quinnen Williams opens up about the difficulties of losing his mother to cancer

One of Nick Saban’s biggest recruiting wins in the past few years is defensive lineman Quinnen Williams. He is one of the funniest and most outgoing guys to play the game and has bloomed into one of the best players in the NFL. In 2022, he was a First-Team All-Pro and signed one of the largest tackles for a defensive tackle in the history of the NFL this offseason.

However, life hasn’t always been sunshine and rainbows for Williams. In a recent sit-down interview with Ryan Clark of ESPN, Williams talks about losing his mother to breast cancer when he was in middle school.

She continues to be a large driving force in his life despite not being with him anymore. Both Quinnen and his brother Quincy, also with the Jets, remain very active with the American Cancer Society as a way to help future kids from losing a parent at such a young age.

Foster Moreau announces that he is in full remission from Hodgkin’s lymphoma

Now here’s some good news: Foster Moreau announced that he is in full remission from Hodgkin’s lymphoma

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Now here’s some good news: New Orleans Saints tight end Foster Moreau announced on Monday that he is in full remission from Hodgkin’s lymphoma, having undergone treatment earlier this year following a routine physical with the Saints’ team doctors. He was cleared to return to work during minicamp practices and will be full-go when the team regroups for training camp later this summer.

“After a few tumultuous months, I’ve been blessed with the news that I am in full remission from Hodgkin Lymphoma! I’m so grateful to everyone who reached out to offer their love and support; our prayers were answered. From here I will continue to live my life as God intended,” Moreau wrote from his Twitter account.

Moreau was already popular with Saints fans as a New Orleans native who played college football with the LSU Tigers, but he’s a real asset to the team. The veteran tight end is a capable blocker and emerged as a favorite target of quarterback Derek Carr when they were both playing together on the Las Vegas Raiders in recent years. Now they’re together in the Big Easy, and Moreau can focus on his career with this cancer scare behind him.

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Foster Moreau fully participating at Saints organized team activities

Foster Moreau was present and fully participating at New Orleans Saints organized team activities, running routes and catching passes with the other tight ends:

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File this one under “Things you love to see.” Foster Moreau wasn’t just present for New Orleans Saints organized team activities on Tuesday — he was fully participating in the voluntary workouts after undergoing treatment for Hodgkin’s lymphoma in April.

Moreau has said that because his cancer was non-aggressive, he didn’t have to undergo intensive chemotherapy or radiation treatment, instead taking regularly-scheduled doses of medication specifically tailored to treat the disease. He hasn’t missed time in the weight room or the practice field, so he’s out there running routes and catching passes alongside the other Saints tight ends in his new No. 82 jersey.

Good for him. If Moreau’s feeling well enough to fully participate in offseason work now, he shouldn’t have any problems ramping up when the Saints reach training camp in late July. He’s expected to start with Juwan Johnson at tight end, doing most of his work inline as a blocker and sure-handed receiver while Johnson works from the slot as a big-play threat downfield. For now he’s just focused on picking up the offense and maintaining his rapport with quarterback Derek Carr.

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Foster Moreau talks cancer treatment, relationship with Saints and Derek Carr

Foster Moreau talked about his cancer treatment, his relationship with the Saints, and his friend and mentor Derek Carr on Adam Schefter’s podcast:

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New Orleans Saints tight end Foster Moreau sat down with ESPN’s Adam Schefter to look back on a rollercoaster of emotions during the last few months, and how his relationship with the Saints and quarterback Derek Carr helped seal the deal on his free agent contract with his hometown team.

The way Moreau tells it, he’s “been with the Saints since Aaron Brooks.” He’s born and raised in New Orleans, having played high school football at John Ryan Stadium just ten minutes away from the Caesars Superdome in Mid-City before continuing his athletic career in Baton Rouge with the LSU Tigers. His relationship with the team and its decision-makers played a major role in getting this done.

Moreau says that Loomis called his agent the day after he received his diagnosis. We’ll let him tell it: “That Saturday was the physical. That Sunday, Mickey calls my agent, Joe Linta. He says, ‘Look, we still value Foster as a person, and we value him even more as a player. We would absolutely love to sign him to whatever deal we can, whatever you guys feel comfortable (with), and whenever he’s ready to play, we’re excited to have him regardless. We’re going to keep him here, we’re going to keep him at home.’ And for me, that just spoke volumes.”

His specific cancer is much more treatable than most. Moreau shared that he’s been diagnosed with Nodular lymphocyte-predominant Hodgkin lymphoma, or NLPHL, which is a non-aggressive cancer detected in 3 to 5% of patients. And it can be managed by infrequent medicine doses, not rigorous rounds of radiation or chemotherapy.

“My schedule was looking like this,” Moreau reflected, “I finished (treatment) Tuesday. I signed Wednesday, and Thursday I was out running routes with my quarterback, and my receivers, and my running backs at the Saints’ practice facility at 7:30 in the morning.”

Now he’s on track to practice with his teammates at organized team activities later in May and June, though Moreau’s doctors are advising him on how to best progress and ramp up his activity level. That he’s able to treat his cancer so well is remarkable, and it’s not a blessing he’s taking lightly.

And that last part means a lot — Moreau says that Carr has been one of his closest friends and mentors in the NFL. He recalled one meeting during his rookie year in which Carr addressed a room full of first-year players: “Derek told all of us, ‘You only get this chance once, please make it count, and don’t make it count for anyone other than you.’ It was so powerful for me. I remember where he was sitting. I remember how he said it. Just a special guy and a special leader. I’ll always be, I don’t know if indebted is the right word, but I’ll have a massive amount of reverence for especially the man, but obviously the player.”

As Loomis himself pointed out, the Saints valued Moreau so highly because they believe he’s a very good football player. But all of these human connections matter. Having those bonds and relationships to lean on and keep people together when adversity strikes is vital. Now that he’s putting this medical scare behind him, any adversity Moreau sees on the football field might pale in comparison.

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Mickey Loomis reflects on emotional journey that brought Foster Moreau to the Saints

Saints general manager Mickey Loomis reflected on the emotional journey that brought Foster Moreau back to New Orleans:

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The New Orleans Saints energized a lot of fans by signing tight end Foster Moreau as a free agent, and it’s easy to see why: he might be the best comeback story in the NFL after receiving a life-changing diagnosis for Hodgkin’s lymphoma during a routine physical with the team back in March.

Two months later, though, Moreau has undergone treatment and received clearance to get back on the field and continue his career. General manager Mickey Loomis acknowledged the high-strung emotions of the situation while speaking with local media at the Saints Hall of Fame golf tournament on Monday, but he was careful to remind everyone that there’s real value to the team in signing Moreau.

“First of all, we brought him in because he’s a good player,” Loomis cautioned, noting that isn’t just a feel-good story about bringing a player back to his hometown. “Versatile, well-rounded tight end. The fact that he’s from New Orleans, and has a history at LSU and here (at Jesuit High School), really had nothing to do with our interest in him.”

Moreau developed into a favorite target of Derek Carr’s when they were together on the Las Vegas Raiders, consistently winning on contested-catch opportunities and fighting for yards after the catch. He can block well, too, and he should add some elements to the Saints offense that they’ve been missing.

Still, at the end of the day this is an important chapter in someone’s life, and Loomis admitted as much. He’s as happy as anyone to see things turn for the better for Moreau so that he could get where he is now.

Loomis continued, “That’s emotional. To come take a physical and discover something that’s is unexpected, I know that’s tough on him and his family. And yet they’ve handled it beautifully. The great news is that the prognosis is good, and even the treatment protocol that he’s going to be under is going to allow him to do some things this offseason and hopefully play in the fall.”

So could Moreau be on the field when the Saints regroup for organized team activities later this month? Maybe so, but his doctors could advise him to take it slow and make sure his body has fully recovered from rigorous cancer treatment before putting himself under physical stress so soon. The Saints aren’t going to rush him into the first phase of drills with his new teammates, but they aren’t going to put any limitations on him, either.

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Dennis Allen says Saints don’t anticipate ‘any limitations at all’ for Foster Moreau

Dennis Allen said the Saints don’t anticipate ‘any limitations at all’ for Foster Moreau after undergoing treatment for Hodgkin’s lymphoma:

New Orleans Saints head coach Dennis Allen shared his insight on a number of topics during an interview on the Rich Eisen Show this week, including his live reaction to news that his team was signing free agent tight end Foster Moreau — who had notably received a shocking cancer diagnosis during a physical with team doctors in March.

Foster has since undergone treatment and signed a three-year contract with the team, and Allen couldn’t be happier for him. When asked for his first comments on the Saints’ new addition, Allen was all smiles.

“He’s doing outstanding,” Allen replied. “Huge shoutout to our medical group, in particular Dr. John Amoss for being able to identify this and making sure we have the proper medical treatment for Foster. I think he’s doing outstanding. And the type of treatment he’s receiving, we don’t anticipate that there’s going to be any limitations at all in terms of his ability to participate and perform, and his ability to recover, and that’s the most important thing.”

Multiple local reports say the Saints could have Moreau on the practice field when veterans report for organized team activities next week, but team doctors may exercise an abundance of caution and limit his participation to make sure he isn’t putting too much stress on his body after undergoing rigorous cancer treatment for Hodgkin’s lymphoma. We’ll see how the plan for him ultimately plays out, but Allen certainly sounds as excited as most fans to have Moreau in New Orleans wearing black and gold.

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Foster Moreau expects to play for Saints in 2023 without limitations

Multiple local reports say Foster Moreau expects to play for the Saints in 2023, and that he is not facing practice limitations after undergoing cancer treatment:

Wow. The New Orleans Saints are bringing tight end Foster Moreau back to his hometown as a free agent, and it isn’t just a good-faith gesture in the wake of his cancer diagnosis. Multiple local reports say that Moreau received a positive prognosis and that he expects to play for the Saints in 2023.

First, ESPN’s Adam Schefter said that “Moreau has been cleared and expects to play this season.” ESPN’s Katherine Terrell added that while Moreau’s playing status is uncertain “the course of treatment was looked at in terms of weeks, not months.”

Nola.com’s Luke Johnson reported the indication he’s been given “is that Moreau will be ready to participate right away.”

And NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill shared that Moreau is “still getting treatment but it won’t impact his participation. The Saints will bring him along slowly, but he is not expected to have any limitations.”

So there’s a very strong chance fans will see Moreau on the practice field over the summer, though it’s unclear what his activity level will be. Receiving medical clearance to play and having the right conditioning to help out during games are two different things. They could be approaching him similarly to rookie running back Kendre Miller, who is expected to take it easy this summer while recovering from a meniscus injury.

But this is a big (and very positive) upswing from where Moreau said he expected to be just a few weeks ago, having suggested he could return midseason. If he’s going to be back in the mix even sooner, well, that’s worth celebrating.

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