A Manchester dad found out he had a tumour the size of a tennis ball when water started coming out of his nose.

Phil Sledden-Houston, now 51, was just 48 when he visited a GP after noticing that when he took a sip of water it would come spurting out of his nostrils.

He was sent to a hospital for an MRI scan and was diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer after medics found a huge cancerous lump they believed was caused by smoking.

The dad of two from Middleton, Rochdale was told by doctors he had to have invasive surgery to remove the tennis ball-sized tumour or he would be dead within six months.

Now, after smoking since his teenage years, Phil is sharing his story to urge other people to quit.

Speaking to Manchester Evening News, he said: "I started smoking at school when I was around 15 or 16 as everyone smoked back then.

"I never thought about how it was affecting my health as I wasn’t a heavy smoker, I only smoked a few a day.

“I continued smoking for years and then in 2018, I was drinking water and some of it came out of my nose. I knew something wasn’t right, so I went to get help.

“I was referred to see a specialist at the dental hospital, who told me I had cancer and that it was serious, and I needed to have an urgent MRI scan and biopsy.

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"A week later I was diagnosed with Stage 4 (palliative care) mouth cancer and the doctor told me I had a choice – to decide to have the operation within a month or die.

"He said I could have six months to live and maybe see Christmas. I had to quit smoking immediately.

“I’ll never forget the surgeon telling me how serious it was, the tumour was in my cheek bone, and he thought it had been hidden for four years.

"It was the size of a tennis ball and had to be removed. It was a massive operation, and it took me months to recover.”

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A team of surgeons operated on Phil for over 15 hours. They cut his face in half and removed his cheek bone, eye and palate.

Part of his hip bone was then used to replace the removed part and reconstruct his face but it left him unable to smile.

He couldn’t talk or eat properly for six months and he was also left slightly disfigured as the nerves in his face were damaged during surgery.

“It looks like I’ve had a tiny stroke, but I have been incredibly lucky as not everyone makes it through," Phil explained.

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"The medical team managed to remove the entire tumour, so I didn’t have to have chemotherapy or radiotherapy.

“In October 2019, I had a facelift which has given me much more confidence and I only have a faint scar now.

"One of the biggest challenges was learning to eat and talk just using the left-hand side of my face, as I have no teeth on the other side.

"I’ve now been in remission for just over three years, and I have never felt better.”

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Phil has since been able to return to his job in highways maintenance. Since quitting smoking he says he sleeps better, no longer feels out of breath and had more energy.

Smoking is directly linked to at least 15 different forms of cancer, and causes 15 percent of all cancer cases each year in the UK (54,300 cases), according to Cancer Research UK.

It remains the leading cause of preventable illness across the country, eventually killing half of all long term smokers, the charity says.

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