A sex offender who made a bizarre admission of guilt to murdering a Princeton woman continues to claim he cannot get treatment for cancer in prison.

Roger Badour, charged with first-degree murder in the death of Gisele Duckham, appeared in B.C. Supreme Court on Monday. He dropped his first lawyer and is now being forced by the court to find a new lawyer to represent him.

If found guilty, Badour faces life in prison.

“I have colon cancer . . . and I’ve been trying to get treatment for a year,” he told Justice Ian Meiklem.

But Crown lawyer Lorne Fisher said Badour has seen a doctor four times and a nurse 15 times since he was arrested about a year ago. The last meeting with a doctor was Feb. 6.

“They have no record he has cancer,” Fisher said.

Badour is expected to be back in court later this month to determine if he has a lawyer.

He attempted to plead guilty in December, saying he could get only get medical help in a federal jail.

According to news reports, Badour was on a long-term supervision order in November 2011, after serving jail time for sexual assault. He was reported missing by authorities.

Victoria police issued warnings last year about Badour, who had been convicted of sexual assault with a weapon and forcible confinement.

Neighbours of Duckham said the woman lost her husband several years before and took in Badour, who has a history of befriending vulnerable women.

She let Badour stay in a trailer she owned at the back of her Princeton property.