appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

hooksArticlePageFloatingButtonConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Charmaine Yu

When Kevin Cureau first spoke to his oncologist about the mass behind his knee, he was not stressed out.
“It was more, ‘Oh, this is just something I have to get through.’ I wasn’t scared or anything,” says Cureau, 37, a French-Chinese cancer survivor born and living in Hong Kong who was diagnosed with stage-three liposarcoma in late 2025.
Cureau took the news so calmly that even his doctor was a little surprised. But he admits that, at the time, he did not fully understand what liposarcoma was. Even when retelling his cancer experience to this reporter, he appeared nonchalant about his health scare.
His doctor explained that, because of his relatively young age, his body was better equipped to handle the necessary treatments.
“If she was confident, I had no reason to think otherwise,” Cureau says.
Liposarcoma is a group of rare cancers that begin in the body’s fat cells, typically beginning in the belly, arms and legs. It usually affects adults over 50. But myxoid liposarcoma, also known as round cell liposarcoma, may affect people as young as 35. This variation developed behind Cureau’s left knee.

Finding and diagnosing
Cureau first noticed the small lump behind his knee a couple of years ago but did not pay it much attention. The unexplained mass grew much faster towards the end of last year, eventually making it difficult to bend his leg.
By the time Cureau saw a doctor, an MRI showed the lump had grown into a fat-filled mass measuring 15cm (5.9 inches) by 10.5cm by 7cm – roughly the size of a grapefruit. He underwent surgery to remove it and perform a biopsy, which led to a diagnosis of stage-three liposarcoma. Doctors graded the tumour at a two, indicating a moderately fast proliferation rate and risk of recurrence.
“I feel that I was lucky, and everything that happened was sort of the best-case scenario,” Cureau reflects. “The tumour itself, yes, it was large, but it was localised in one big pocket. It had not spread anywhere else. It was just attached a little bit to a nerve, but the doctor was able to remove everything in one go.”
Cureau is among a growing number of cases of adults under 50 getting cancer diagnoses. One in eight new cancer cases in Hong Kong is among this age group. According to the latest figures from the Hong Kong Cancer Registry, Hong Kong recorded 37,953 new cancer cases in 2023, with early-onset cancers accounting for 12 per cent, about 4,500 cases.
The silver lining is that younger patients generally handle intensive treatment better, and their cancers are often detected early enough to treat effectively.

Treatment and side effects
Cureau took a proactive approach by remaining optimistic, learning about his prognosis and safeguarding his fertility. Having private health insurance allowed him to start radiation therapy quickly in a private clinic, while he opted for the public hospital system for his chemotherapy to manage costs.
He began radiotherapy treatment in January, five times a week for six weeks. The treatment was localised to the tumour. His skin there became dry and dark in colour – comparable to a “very intense sort of sunburn”.
“My skin actually started cracking open. So it just sort of transformed into an open wound at the back of the knee,” he says.
Quickly following radiotherapy, he had five rounds of chemotherapy, once every three weeks in a public hospital. Though scans showed that cancer cells had not spread from the original site, chemo was recommended as a precaution.
The process was intense, each round requiring a two-night, three-day stay in hospital to receive a continuous 24-hour IV infusion of a standard drug regimen to eliminate any remaining cancer cells.
“I don’t think you’re ever prepared for how tired and how nauseous you’ll be … you lose your appetite a little bit, and everything takes a bit more effort,” he says.

Cureau’s family flew in from France to stay with him. Luckily, he could work remotely during treatment, and his employer was understanding about his health needs.
While Cureau himself was not worried by his condition, his wife and mother were “definitely the most stressed-out people”.
His four-year-old son did not understand what was happening either, and Cureau – being confident that he would soon recover – did not see the need to explain to him what cancer was.
“I would tell him that I had to go to the hospital and his only comment was, ‘Again?’ That’s it. And then he just found it funny the day I came back and I had no hair. He started joking, saying, ‘Oh, can I get no hair, also?’”
Staying positive
Preserving his fertility was one of Cureau’s most critical decisions. He and his wife still hope to expand their family – a consideration rarely on the radar for the typical cancer patient in their fifties or sixties.
Before starting targeted radiation or chemotherapy, both of which can permanently impair reproductive health, Cureau chose to freeze his sperm, keeping the door open for in vitro fertilisation (IVF).
“You really never expect it to happen to you,” Cureau says of his diagnosis, despite having a family history of cancer and friends who have also battled the disease.
His experience has made him an advocate for early detection, urging even young adults to seek immediate medical checks if they spot unusual symptoms.

But he also encourages people to stay positive in the face of cancer, stressing that it is “not so much [of] a death sentence as it used to be” thanks to modern medicine.
Today, about 14 weeks since his last round of chemotherapy, all of Cureau’s treatment is concluded and his hair has begun to grow back.
The doctor’s orders still require him to have lots of rest, and it still “hurts a little bit” when he bends his leg, he says, “but it’s just something I’ll deal with slowly”.
Like what you read? Follow SCMP Lifestyle on Instagram. You can also sign up for our eNewsletter here.


What I learned from 230km ultra-marathon race in Kenya over 5 exhausting days

How to relax and detox through ikebana, the ancient Japanese art of flower arranging

5 of the best things to do in Hong Kong this Mid-Autumn Festival weekend, September 25-27

Hong Kong’s mental health narrative must instil a sense of hope

Wellness

‘I wasn’t scared’: young Hong Kong rare cancer survivor who stayed positive

Hong Kong cancer survivor Kevin Cureau was diagnosed with stage-three liposarcoma in late 2025 and underwent radiotherapy treatment and chemotherapy. His experience has made him an advocate for early detection. Photo: Nathan Tsui

Cureau with his wife and son. Photo: courtesy of Kevin Cureau

Cureau’s skin darkened after receiving localised radiotherapy on the back of his left leg. Photo: courtesy of Kevin Cureau

Cureau lost his hair after receiving chemotherapy treatment. Photo: Kevin Cureau

Cureau with his wife. Photo: Kevin Cureau

Why dementia is preventable – and the new tools that can reduce your risk

A group of elderly people gather to swim. Research increasingly shows that dementia is anything but inevitable and that we have more control over the risks than once believed. Photo: Shutterstock

The 2025 discovery that GLP-1 drug semaglutide did not slow the progression of Alzheimer’s was a setback in the fight against dementia, but there have also been significant strides in brain health research. Photo: Instagram/glp1training

Residents in Buenos Aires participate in a tango lesson. Tango dancing was included as a culturally tailored component of the LatAm-Fingers study on ways to prevent cognitive decline through lifestyle interventions. Photo: Shutterstock

Professor Vincent Mok of the Chinese University of Hong Kong was part of a team that developed the world’s first retinal AI tool for assessing Alzheimer’s risk. Photo: CUHK

A patient undergoes a scan using ICBH, the world’s first retinal AI tool for assessing Alzheimer’s risk, developed by a team at CUHK. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

Can you get cancer? Hong Kong doctors say it takes more than 1 mistake

 Illustration: Henry Wong

Tom Hutchins says he was just 30 when he was diagnosed with testicular cancer. Photo: Jonathan Wong

12 years after surviving breast cancer, a new health scare tests an American journalist

US-based journalist Amy Wu describes her recent brush with cancer and why listening to your body matters. Photo: courtesy of Amy Wu

Amy Wu finds the lighter side of life at a comedy club in New Haven, Connecticut, in August 2026, to take her mind off health matters. Photo: courtesy of Amy Wu

Wu with her surgeon, Dr Peter Dottino. Photo: courtesy of Amy Wu

Wu leaving hospital after having surgery in February 2026. Photo: courtesy of Amy Wu 

Wu ready for a swim. Photo: courtesy of Amy Wu 

Wu at her wedding ceremony in the summer of 2026. Photo: courtesy of Amy Wu

A guide to Hong Kong’s bitter herbal teas and how Gen Z is reviving the health tradition

A staff member fills bowls with herbal tea known as leung cha ("cooling tea") from a giant copper pot at Pak Po Tong on Temple Street in Hong Kong. Photo: Elson Li

A customer drinks herbal tea at Pak Po Tong on Temple Street in Hong Kong. Photo: Elson Li

Author and food writer Lui Ka-chun says that cooling teas are usually for southern Chinese ailments such as dampness and excessive heat. Photo: courtesy of Lui Ka-chun

Keung Wai-kwan, the second-generation owner of Pak Po Tong, at her shop on Temple Street. Photo: Elson Li

TCM practitioner Samuel To says cooling teas should be used as needed rather than consumed indiscriminately.  Photo: Xiaomei Chen

Gen Z’s focus on wellness has triggered a resurgence in the popularity of leung cha. Photo: Shutterstock

Lifestyle

Health & Wellness

Health

Kevin Cureau describes how he stayed calm and confident of beating stage-three liposarcoma and the steps he took to protect his fertility


Kevin Cureau describes how he stayed calm and confident of beating stage-three liposarcoma and the steps he took to protect his fertility.


Cancer

Hong Kong cancer therapy

Disease

Reproductive health

‘I wasn’t scared’: young Hong Kong rare cancer survivor who stayed positive

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Kevin Cureau describes how he stayed calm and confident of beating stage-three liposarcoma and the steps he took to protect his fertility

Kevin Cureau describes how he stayed calm and confident of beating stage-three liposarcoma and the steps he took to protect his fertility