Briton beats cancer to "take on Le Tour"

By Kate Kelland

LONDON (Reuters Life!) - Mike Grisenthwaite is not quite sure what got him to where he is now.

It could have been luck. It could have been his brother's bone marrow. Or it could have been his bike.

Diagnosed with cancer at the age of 37, the former professional rugby player was told he may not live to see 2007.

But far from languishing in hospital, Grisenthwaite will instead spend July 2007 chasing the world's elite endurance cyclists across the mammoth Tour de France.

"There's no way you could take that kind of physical punishment and come out the other side unscathed without being in top shape -- and having a bit of luck," he told Reuters in an interview ahead of his July 9th start.

He is describing a seven-year battle with non-Hodgkins lymphoma -- a form of cancer he fears is often lost in the shadows of headline-grabbing campaigns on breast or lung cancer.

In an effort to raise the profile of the disease, Grisenthwaite will join five other cancer survivors -- including former England footballer Geoff Thomas -- and "take on Le Tour", cycling the whole of the 2007 Tour de France, stage by stage, mountain by mountain, two days behind the professional peloton.

Like the pros, the survivors will start in London, and cover 3,550 kilometers in four countries in just 21 days, conquering 21 mountains in sometimes blistering heat, aiming to earn a million pounds for charity.