A Queensland dad is living every family’s worst nightmare – again.
Justin Adams, a father-of-three and small business owner from Yeppoon, has been told for the third time in four years that his cancer has returned.
After surprising doctors with miraculous recoveries following his first two diagnoses, Justin was told in April this year that the deadly disease had come back, turning his life upside down once again.
Justin was first diagnosed with stage three colon cancer at the age of 37 in September 2021 – shortly after building his dream home and relocating his wife, Tanya, and their children to a new town.
‘It was his life dream to open a micro-brewery. So we built a home and moved to Yeppoon from Brisbane, and we were in the process of setting up the business,’ Tanya told FEMAIL.
‘We had secured a venue, put a deposit on brewing gear, and were about to set up and open the microbrewery when he got his diagnosis.’
Tanya, a doctor of 10 years, said Justin had noticed a few minor symptoms that seemed out of the ordinary, and they both agreed to monitor them before panicking.
‘Justin had mentioned to me a few times on and off over the preceding few months that he’d had some bleeding when he went to the toilet. He’d had a little bit here and there, and it would come go away again, nothing major,’ Tanya said.
Justin Adams, a father-of-three and small business owner from the town of Yeppoon, has been told for the third time in four years that his cancer has returned. Pictured with his wife Tanya
Before his first diagnosis in 2021, the couple and their children (two of three pictured) had built a home and moved to Yeppoon, Queensland, from Brisbane, and were in the process of setting up a micro-brewery business
‘When he had a significantly larger episode of bleeding, I said “we really need to go and have a look at this and see what it is, because that’s not normal”.’
Tanya organised an urgent colonoscopy for Justin at the hospital she worked at, initially attributing his symptoms to a less serious diagnosis – either ulcerative colitis (inflamed bowels) or Crohn’s disease, both of which are non-deadly and treatable.
However, after his check-up and scans, Tanya and Justin’s worst fears were realised after doctors discovered a tumour in his large intestine.
‘The surgeon called me after (Justin) had the colonoscopy procedure, and said, “I need you to come into the hospital to pick him up, and I need to talk to you when you get here,” which is never a good thing,’ she said.
The diagnosis came as a shock, and even more so because there were no other symptoms, and Justin had no family history of cancer.
Things moved quickly from that moment, with Justin whisked into surgery to remove a section of his large intestine, along with the cancerous tumour and surrounding lymph nodes.
The surgery was a success, and although Justin was technically cancer free, doctors decided he should have six months of preventative chemotherapy to reduce the risk of recurrence or spreading.
A trained mechanical engineer by trade, it was always Justin’s dream to own a brewery and make his own beer
Throughout his first round of surgery for colon cancer and six-months of gruelling chemotherapy treatment, Justin finally opened his brewery business thanks to the help of friends and the community
Pictured: Justin and Tanya on their wedding day eight years ago
Although Justin was otherwise fit and healthy, the chemotherapy took a toll on his body and mental health, with treatment one day every three weeks.
However, Tanya remained strong by his side for the sake of their family.
‘The mental health side of it is enormous,’ she said.
‘Feelings of uncertainty about what’s going to happen next, or what and where are we going to be in a year, we just cannot get ahead.
‘There’s also the depression that comes along with feeling sick, feeling sore, and knowing that you’re going to have to go and do it again next week.’
Thankfully, Tanya’s was able to be flexible with her work, and his parents moved near them to help in any way they could.
‘He had days when he was terrible and days when he was okay. So in that time, he managed to set up and fit out an entire microbrewery and get it ready to open and make beer,’ Tanya said.
For a brief time, it seemed the worst was over. Justin pushed through the six months of gruelling treatments, had his dream business ready to open (with a lot of help from his local community), and in March 2022 he was given the all-clear.
‘He had his last chemotherapy treatment on the Monday of that week, and we opened on the Saturday straight afterwards. The local community was amazing, they all supported us so much, and still do,’ she said.
Fast forward to December 2023, during what should have been a regular routine check-up, Justin and Tanya received the gut-wrenching news no cancer survivor ever wants to hear – the disease had come back.
For a brief time, it seemed the worst was over and Justin was back to normal life working and enjoying family time. But in December 2023, during what should have been a regular routine check-up, Justin and Tanya received the gut-wrenching news that his cancer was back – this time in his lymph nodes
It was not the type of news anyone wants to hear again, let alone right before celebrating Christmas and when business at the brewery was booming. This time, Justin completely asymptomatic. Pictured: part-way through building his ‘dream’ micro-brewery
This time, the recurrence was in the lymph nodes in Justin’s chest and abdomen – not in his gut as it had been before. And worse still, it was stage four.
It was the kind of news no one wants to hear, let alone again – especially right before Christmas and while the brewery business was booming. Yet this time, Justin was completely asymptomatic.
In January 2024, the brave couple pushed through yet another gruelling 10 months of chemotherapy, with Tanya by his side every step of the way.
‘He started intensive chemotherapy and immunotherapy every two weeks, which was really intense, and really toxic. He was very unwell at that point,’ Tanya said.
Between working, taking care of his family, and undergoing his second round of harrowing treatments, a special CT scan miraculously showed that Justin had beaten cancer again – very much to the doctors’ surprise a second time around.
Now, in a heartbreaking twist, 2025 has brought the family to its knees once again, with a third recurrence of the disease in his lymph nodes. This time, Justin’s prognosis is even more uncertain.
He’s receiving intensive chemotherapy every two weeks – a regime that could continue indefinitely.
Unable to work, Justin has had to step away from the business he built with his own two hands, now paying employees to keep things running while the family loses their primary source of income.
Now, in a heartbreaking twist, 2025 has brought the family to its knees once again, with a third recurrence of the disease in his lymph nodes again. This time, Justin’s prognosis is even more uncertain. Pictured: Justin with his young son
Meanwhile, Tanya, who has used up all her leave caring for Justin through his previous bouts of illness, is now the family’s sole provider, juggling full-time work, raising their children, and caring for her unwell husband with no assurances for their future.
Staying as positive as she can, she said it’s Justin who is the real hero.
‘He’s always been the kind of person who says life’s too short, and we shouldn’t be wasting a day. Now more than ever he says we shouldn’t be wasting time,’ she said.
In a world where cancer affects one-in-two Australians in their lifetime, Justin and Tanya’s story is a poignant reminder of how quickly life can change, and how powerful community support can be in the face of unimaginable hardship.
‘If you think there’s something wrong with your body, even if you’re young, fit and healthy, go and get it checked out,’ Tanya warned.
‘I’m glad that we did something, because it could have been much worse at the time of diagnosis than it was.’
