Ciara Mageean: ‘You make your own hope, I’m not going to let cancer win’

“I think in life you make your own hope. I’m not going to let this cancer win.”

Ciara Mageean has always been a fighter.

Her athletics career was a portrait of resilience, battling adversity and never giving in.

Now, in a battle that goes far beyond the track, those same qualities are shining through.

Mageean’s stage four bowel cancer diagnosis came in May 2025 and she has now had 18 rounds of chemotherapy.

It will come as no surprise to those that know her that the 34-year-old is determined that this battle will not define her – even if she knows it could well turn into a fight she cannot win.

For the two-time Olympian, she is trying to find happiness in the little things in life.

She still has hope, though she admits “there are certainly moments where it’s a lot harder for it to shine through”.

“Throughout this journey, there’s been things that have been so crushing, and the news is so tough to be told that you might have two to three years left to live,” Mageean told BBC Sport NI.

“It’s something that’s absolutely catastrophic in your life, and I hold on to the hope that I can be part of that 10% to 15% that survives beyond five years.”

Mageean hopes that there is ongoing research that might change her prognosis, and she is determined to enjoy her life because “none of us are guaranteed tomorrow”.

“Obviously, I’ve been given a diagnosis that’s very tough but there are people that go out today, and they won’t come back in their door.

“That’s hope and joy for me, that I can survive this and I can live into my old age.

“I think we all need that no matter what, we need to keep hope because if not, then it’s won already.”