Chris Hoy on heartbreaking moment his wife told him about MS diagnosis

Sir Chris Hoy has spoken about the moment his wife Sarra told him that she had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.

Cyclist legend Hoy revealed last week that he was terminally ill with cancer and that he had been told that he may only have between two and four years left to live.

The 48-year-old cycling legend, a six-time Olympic gold medallist for Team GB, admitted in an interview with The Times that he had known his cancer was terminal for more than 12 months before sharing the news publicly.

Excerpts of Hoy's autobiography, 'All That Matters', have since been published by the same newspaper.

In his upcoming book, Hoy describes the moment he learned that Sarra had MS.

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Hoy stated that Sarra has been more upbeat when faced with his diagnosis, writing that she hangs on the three words ‘years and years’ when focusing on their future together.

The Olympic legend added that her support has been more remarkable after her own diagnosis, which came just seven days after his.

'One evening in December, after our kids Callum and Chloe had gone to bed, Sarra looked serious and said she had something to tell me,' Hoy wrote. 

'I realised immediately it was something big as Sarra, always so strong in every situation, was beginning to crumble and struggling to get the words out. "Do you remember that scan I went for?" she started through tear-filled eyes. "Well, they think it might be multiple sclerosis." 

'I immediately broke down, distraught both by the news and the fact she'd received it without me there.

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'She went on to explain they had called her and told her over a month before. It was so hard to try to compute that she had absorbed the awfulness of this diagnosis alone, without sharing it with me, in order to protect me. 

'I tried to let the words sink in as my mind was spinning, trying to understand what had been happening to her, all while she had been accompanying me to every one of my own hospital appointments.

'As with my diagnosis, she was the one to bring me back to the present, trying to reassure me, saying: "Look at me, I'm fine right now, I'm here, I'm OK."'

Since Hoy shared the news of his cancer diagnosis, he has been inundated with messages of support, including from many people currently fighting cancer, as well as survivors.

The conversation around his diagnosis has also encouraged lots more men to seek advice about cancer.

In a video posted on Thursday, Hoy said he had been 'blown away' by the number of men seeking cancer advice since he revealed his terminal diagnosis.

His revelation last weekend that he was given between two to four years to live prompted a huge increase in online searches about the illness.

They reached their highest level since the announcements in February and March of King Charles and Princess Kate's respective diagnoses.

In fact, visits to the website of MacMillan Cancer Support were 34 per cent higher than the average Sunday over the previous year, and its online pages about prostate cancer received 1,600 hits, an increase of 132 per cent on the typical Sunday web traffic.

The charity believes that Hoy's decision to be open about his diagnosis could now save lives by encouraging people to see their doctor about concerning symptoms.

In a video posted on Instagram on Thursday, Hoy said: 'I now have a deep resolve to turn this incredibly difficult diagnosis into something more positive.

'I understand that there has been a massive increase in men seeking advice on prostate cancer in the last few days and that's been a huge comfort to us to know that hopefully many lives could be saved by early testing.'