Manchester boxing trainer Joe Gallagher has confirmed his cancer returned in January, but says he has responded well to an aggressive course of chemotherapy and will undergo surgery in September as he chases a second all-clear.
Gallagher, who guides the careers of several leading fighters from his Manchester gym, was previously told he had stage four bowel and liver cancer, a diagnosis that led to chemotherapy and a major operation. He was given the all-clear in September last year and felt strong enough to travel with his boxer Mikie Tallon to Las Vegas for a mid-week card ahead of Canelo Alvarez's clash with Terence Crawford.
That relief proved short-lived. Routine scans in January, initially prompted by a check on his heart, uncovered fresh cancer in his liver.
Speaking on the latest episode of the Toe2Toe Sky Sports Boxing podcast, Gallagher opened up about the shock of the diagnosis and the toll the subsequent treatment has taken.
2026 has been a bumpy road. It was a right kick in the nuts at the beginning of the year.
In September, I got given the all clear on the plane to Vegas, and then I went in back in January for something to do with my heart - believe it or not, I have a heart! - I went for scans and then they came back and they said: 'Listen the cancer has come back to your liver.'
He explained that doctors initially feared the tumours could not be removed at all.
They said it was inoperable at first, and then there was chance of it being operable, but I had to do a load of chemo to shrink it. So I've gone through seven cycles, and it was a lot more aggressive.
The cocktail of chemo was huge. Obviously, you could see me losing my hair and everything else.
Despite the ordeal, Gallagher says he is now looking ahead to the operation itself.
I've been doing that, coming through it all, so now I'm going to have an operation in September to get rid of this.
He gave a detailed breakdown of what the surgery will involve.
There's four areas of the liver that has got cancer, three of them can be cut out, one of them they've got to burn it out, but that one is sitting on a main artery that's carrying blood from the feet to the heart.
That's the one that needed to shrink a little bit, which it has.
Gallagher admitted his frustration at having to step back just as a promising crop of fighters was emerging from his gym.
The consultant is very matter of fact, which they have to be. He said I needed to rest.
But I was just so annoyed because I thought: '2026, here we go, I've got a great team of talent coming through.' And then I thought: 'Oh my God.'
But we've still worked on. I was in the gym yesterday.
Everyone knows I'm not available in September. But I'll be back for the beginning of October, hopefully.
Chemotherapy course and surgical detail
According to BoxingScene, Gallagher completed seven cycles of chemotherapy by the end of July, and the report adds further clarity to the location of the trickiest tumour, describing it as sitting on a vein carrying blood from the legs toward the head.
That outlet also reported that the cancer's return was identified at the very start of 2026, with the operation now pencilled in for early September, matching Gallagher's own account on the podcast.
A long fight dating back years
The trainer's battle with the disease stretches back further than this latest scare. He was previously diagnosed with stage four bowel and liver cancer and, following treatment, was told at one stage that no further active treatment was required beyond routine six-month scans and blood tests, according to an earlier BoxingScene report.
What happens next
Gallagher expects to go under the knife in early September to remove or burn away the four affected areas of his liver, with the trickiest section requiring careful management around the vein carrying blood between his legs and head, as detailed by BoxingScene. He hopes to be back in the gym by the start of October once he has recovered.
Tallon eyes Joshua vs Fury undercard spot
Mikie Tallon, also speaking to the Toe2Toe Sky Sports Boxing podcast, addressed speculation over a potential Tyson Fury versus Anthony Joshua showdown.
I know just as much as everyone else [regarding Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua]. I've seen Netflix put a promo out on the WWE last night or something like that.
It'll be great. Joshua vs Fury. A mega fight.
So, I'll keep my fingers crossed. If I could get on the card, I would. Definitely.
Tallon also reflected on a career highlight, recalling his first stoppage victory over Argentinian Olympian Leandro Jose Blanc with a body shot, and the tradition Gallagher has of making montage videos celebrating such finishes.
Before the Fury [undercard] fight, that was my first stoppage when I did him [Argentinian Olympian Leandro Jose Blanc] in the first round with a body shot, Joe [Gallagher] was making montages and little clips of all the fighters years ago.
Like Callum Smith, Beefy Smith, Scott Quigg, Anthony Crolla, Paul Butler, Marcus Morrison - all them stopping people with body shots.
I said to myself, the next time he's going to put me in one of those videos. And then after we got that stoppage win, I was like: 'You can add me to one of those videos now, Joe!'
