A Part of Hearst Digital Media 2024 Boston Marathon, he thought about the people who helped him navigate one of the toughest years of his life. By the time he reached the homestretch on Boylston Street, the 69-year-old was overwhelmed with gratitude for those who encouraged him to train for a race that seemed improbable eight months ago.
CA Notice at Collection kidney cancer and underwent surgery to remove a large tumor from his left kidney. A scar that stretches from his sternum to his belly button is a constant reminder of the procedure and grueling recovery process that followed.
On Monday, April 15, Wells completed the Boston Marathon alongside one of the training partners that helped him return to the sport he loves. Amid warmer conditions on Patriot’s Day, he finished his seventh Boston in 4:58:27. Though it was slower than he hoped to run, time didn’t matter to Wells. He was simply happy to be there after what he endured.
“With everything that’s happened in the last year, it felt so good to be back and running and seeing everyone,” Wells said. “There’s a lot of stuff you can do when you don’t think it’s possible.”
For Wells, training for the race played a key part in the recovery process that helped him regain his confidence and make a comeback few would’ve imagined.
A late start
The retired development engineer from Akron, Ohio, started running when he was 49 years old. In the fall of 2003, Wells was driving his daughter to dance class near the University of Akron when he noticed the roads were blocked for the Akron Marathon. After he dropped her off, the father of two got out of his car and walked to the sidelines. He played hockey in an adult league, but watching the runners battle over the last mile inspired him to take up a new challenge.
Seeing him embrace competitive sports for years, his wife Cheryl Wells wasn’t surprised he wanted to jump straight to the marathon distance. “He didn't run a 5K or a 10K or a half. Most people kind of work up to [the marathon] and he just did it,” Cheryl said. “It’s a personality type though. He’s very structured, especially when he makes his mind up.”
After watching the Akron Marathon, Wells bought a training book written by Hal Higdon and a pair of running shoes. He started running by himself in preparation for the 2004 Akron Marathon. Though he made beginner mistakes with fueling and hydration, Wells finished his first 26.2 in 4:08. From there, he was hooked.
“I think it was the fact that I could do it,” Wells said. “Here’s something that not very many people have done. And it was kind of fun.”
For about 10 years, Wells continued to run solo—waking up at 4:30 a.m. every morning to hit the pavement before work at Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company—until he met Connie Gardner, an age group American record-holder in ultrarunning. While buying shoes at Second Sole, the local running store where Gardner worked, Wells was invited to join the shop’s Saturday morning group run. He’s been running with them ever since and earned impressive results. His fastest 26.2 is 3:37 from the 2013 Akron Marathon. Since 2015, he’s qualified for the Boston Marathon seven times and ran his fastest time on the course (3:57) in 2022.
He’s also a key figure in the local running community. When Gardner was the head track coach at Archbishop Hoban High School, she brought him on as her assistant to help with the boy’s team. “I wanted [the runners] to have a well balanced life. That was my plan, and Tom was the one that was going to guide them,” Gardner said. He led the squad’s “10-mile Tuesday” workout for six years.
A devastating diagnosis
In the spring of 2023, Wells’ health took a terrible turn. In training for the Boston Marathon, he started to feel extreme fatigue on his runs. At the time, he thought it was due to old age and continued on with the training cycle. But the race was disastrous, Wells said. “About mile 15, I just completely fell apart and I finished but it was one of those horrific races where you just feel terrible at the end.”
After Boston, Wells continued to feel depleted on his runs. In May, he started to lose weight rapidly when his appetite decreased. In three weeks, he lost 15 pounds.
Last summer, he went to the doctor, who found a hard lump below his left rib cage. The doctor ordered a CAT scan, which revealed a cancerous mass on his left kidney. Wells was diagnosed with renal sarcoma, a rare type of kidney cancer. The devastating news was even more difficult to process because his father died from the same disease 21 years ago.
On August 9, Wells underwent surgery. Doctors removed his kidney and a mass that was 15 centimeters long and weighed three pounds. They also dissected lymph nodes in the surrounding area to determine if the cancer had spread to other organs.
The first few days after the operation were painful. To let the incision heal, Wells slept upright with pillows in a straight back rocker for several days. Gradually, he was able to recline the chair low enough to sleep in a normal position laying down.
After a week, things began to improve. Wells started going on short walks from his house down the hill to the main road and back, about half a mile each way.
A big goal
Four weeks after the operation, Wells took a major leap. He signed up for the 2024 Boston Marathon. For Wells, the race served two purposes: The training would help him get physically fit, and the running goal would boost his mental health. “Cancer is a pretty horrible disease, but [training] gives you a focus, a purpose,” Wells said. “Do something regular every day, and it helps you move throughout your day, week, month.”
In September, Gardner organized a group walk at the park, where dozens of Wells’ friends and family gathered to celebrate his recovery together. They also brought him running gear to help kick off his Boston training cycle.
“Tom, the most consistent man on the planet who we can count on for everything, all of a sudden it looked like he might be taken out of the game,” Gardner said. “Everyone wanted to rally behind him.”
Since the surgery, Wells gets an enhanced body scan every three months to monitor his health. His last scan was in March, and there are no signs of cancer.
On October 16, almost 10 weeks after the surgery, Wells started running again with the approval of his doctors. Building up mileage was a tough process because the scar tissue wasn’t fully healed. The further he ran, pounding his legs on the pavement and engaging core muscles, the more pain he felt. Wells worked with a physical therapist, who guides him in stretches and core movements—bird dog exercises and planks, for example—which help rebuild and strengthen the area.
By Thanksgiving, he was logging between 35 and 40 miles each week. In February, his mileage increased to 55-60 in preparation for Boston. Wells, Gardner, and their training partner Nikki Niemeyer developed a training program they followed together. Wells has to be mindful about speedwork—the pain often returns when he picks up the pace—but he’s been able to maintain a steady clip on long runs. With one kidney, he’s also become more mindful about hydration by adding more water stops to his runs.
On Monday, Wells finished Boston with Gardner running alongside him. Now, after completing the race as a cancer survivor, Wells is already looking ahead to the next 26.2 where he can earn another Boston qualifying time for next year.
“You can get wrapped up in wondering how long am I going to be around,” Wells said. “By having a goal out there, it’s helped me focus on moving forward not only in running, but just living.”
Taylor Dutch is a writer and editor living in Austin, Texas, and a former NCAA track athlete who specializes in fitness, wellness, and endurance sports coverage. Her work has appeared in Runner’s World, SELF, Bicycling, Outside, and Podium Runner.
