Blood scandal victim says award-winning garden 'saved him from dark hole'

Steve Damon thought he had been given a death sentence when he was diagnosed with cancer at the age of 10.

Despite the brutality of his treatment for Hodgkin lymphoma in the 1970s, he survived and was eventually given the all-clear in 1980.

"When you are given that second chance you think nothing else can go wrong in your life," he said.

But he was wrong.

Four years ago, he found out he was a victim of the infected blood scandal.

Steve discovered he was one of an estimated 30,000 people who were given contaminated blood as part of his treatment - the result being a diagnosis of hepatitis C and later cirrhosis.

He said creating a "unique" front garden at his home had helped him to survive the trauma.

Steve, 62, from Market Harborough in Leicestershire, spent decades unaware that the treatment he received as a child had left him infected with hepatitis C - a virus which can cause liver damage if left untreated.

"I was getting more and more tired several years ago," he said. "I couldn't continue with my gardening business and I had to close it."

He began to undergo tests and was finally given the diagnosis in a letter, which arrived unexpectedly.

"When I was diagnosed, the anger inside of me could have consumed me," he said.

"I made it my goal to put it to the back of my mind."

He turned his attention to the small front garden at his Rutland Walk home spending hours digging, planting and building.

What began as a way to calm his feelings became an award-winning space filled with jasmine, large tree ferns, yuccas, alliums and artichoke plants.

The garden is also home to handmade art and sculpture, including metalwork pieces Steve taught himself to make.

His efforts led him to win the Best Front Garden in the East Midlands in Bloom competition in 2025.

"The garden I've designed here has kept me out of a dark hole," he said. "It has calmed me so much and the comments I receive are fantastic.

"One woman who was going through cancer told me she would come and look at my garden after every chemo treatment," he said.

"She said it put a smile on her face. That's what I want to do - put a smile on people's faces.

"I suppose I am starting to realise it is something unique."

As a child, Steve went through five years of treatment for Hodgkin lymphoma, then known as Hodgkin's disease, including months of chemotherapy and three operations.

"I had my spleen taken out because the cancer was spreading," he said. "It was absolutely awful, I was only a kid."

He said he believed he may have been infected during one of those operations.

"They pumped blood into me when I had my operations - it could have been that - but no-one really knows," he said.

Steve said the diagnosis came completely out of the blue.

"I didn't even know about the blood scandal before I was diagnosed," he said.

Steve was among thousands of patients infected through contaminated blood transfusions after surgery, childbirth or other medical treatment between 1970 and 1991.

The UK Infected Blood Inquiry estimates some 27,000 people were infected with hepatitis C in this way.

The true number is difficult to know, partly because hepatitis C can take decades to cause symptoms.

Steve received £90,000 from the Infected Blood Compensation Authority.

He said he was painfully aware that he was one of the lucky ones.

Thousands of victims of the blood scandal are still waiting to be paid compensation with about one victim dying every four days, according to the inquiry.

Steve said he was also aware, though, that the money could never be enough to compensate him for what he has lost - his health and his future.

"I didn't want to accept the compensation at first," he said.

"There are people dying and I felt guilty, but I accepted it because I needed to have closure."

Steve said he would continue to work on his front garden in an effort to retain his Best Front Garden title this year.

"I dedicated my gold award last year to the blood scandal victims," he said.

"It's for those who are still suffering and those who have sadly passed away with no justice and no compensation money."

He said he had already used some of his compensation money to help a single mother create a garden for her children after he heard that she was struggling.

School support worker Melissa Kingston said: "My children and I were lucky enough to be offered a lovely home but, due to financial reasons, I couldn't make it as homely as I would have liked."

She said Steve offered to create a garden for her and the result was a place that was "relaxed... beautiful, a place a lot of time and love was put into".

Steve, who also helps at the charity Harborough Anti-Bullying and Mental Health (HAB), said he was determined to put something positive into the world following his experience.

"There's so much bad going on in the world," he said. "I want to do some good.

"There are so many things I would love to do but I can't now - but I can garden and I can help other people.

"It would be nice to be remembered for that."

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