British long-distance running legend Paula Radcliffe has opened up about the emotional turmoil of watching her daughter Isla undergo chemotherapy, describing it as “the hardest thing a parent can go through”.
Speaking candidly ahead of this year’s London Marathon, Radcliffe, 51, reflected on her daughter’s cancer diagnosis in 2020, and the profound impact it had on their family. Now 18, Isla will be taking on her very first marathon this weekend — a poignant milestone for both mother and daughter, just a decade after Radcliffe ran her final London Marathon.
Recalling the events of 2020 during an interview with Radio Times, Radcliffe said the family first noticed something was wrong when Isla began experiencing persistent symptoms such as stomach aches and shortness of breath during the COVID-19 lockdown.
“It then moved very quickly,” Radcliffe said. “On the Tuesday she visited the doctor, we had a scan on the Wednesday, and one week later we were already in the hospital starting the first round of chemo.”
She described the treatment process as deeply distressing: “It’s the hardest thing a parent can go through. You can support them and be with them the whole way through, but you can’t do that chemo for them.
“It’s horrible to watch your child suffering through that, but at the same time we believed that if it felt bad, it was killing the cancer.”
Radcliffe went on to explain the long-term uncertainties and challenges that still remain. “There are things you’re not ready for – either going through it or as a parent,” she said. “She (Isla) doesn’t know how it has affected her chances of becoming a parent.”
The family’s strength and resolve during this difficult period were tested further by the impact it had on Isla’s younger brother, Raphael. Radcliffe shared that her focus had to shift entirely onto Isla during treatment, causing what she described as “mother’s guilt”.
“There was a huge amount of mother’s guilt for the fact that you have to focus more on one child for that period of time,” she admitted.
As the London Marathon draws near, Radcliffe will be commentating for the BBC on Sunday, watching runners cross the iconic finish line on The Mall — including her own daughter.
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“It’s an extremely emotional place to be anyway, when you see people turn that corner on the Mall and they realise they’ve done it,” Radcliffe said. “But when it’s your little girl doing it, that’s going to be a bit more emotional.”
Isla’s decision to take on the marathon comes just a few years after her final round of chemotherapy — a testament to her resilience and strength.
Radcliffe previously spoke about the experience on The Move Against Cancer Podcast in 2021, revealing that Isla had undergone three gruelling rounds of treatment. “It was really hard for the whole family,” she said at the time.
Widely regarded as one of the greatest marathon runners in history, Radcliffe won both the London and New York Marathons three times and claimed victory in the Chicago Marathon in 2002. Though she officially retired from elite competition in 2015, she recently made a return to marathon running, completing both the Tokyo and Boston Marathons in 2024.
As she watches Isla take her own place among thousands of runners this Sunday, Radcliffe will undoubtedly draw pride not only from her daughter’s strength on the course, but from the courage she showed off it.
“It’s a proud moment,” she said. “But also a deeply emotional one.”
