Charlotte Brigden
Ellie and Charlotte's 127 Mile Challenge
Fundraising for Solving Kids’ Cancer UK
Story
Ellie and I are going to be cycling the Leeds and Liverpool canal on the 1st of September 2013 to raise money for The Sam Shaw Appeal.
Sam Shaw is fighting neuroblastoma, an aggressive childhood cancer. To give him the best chance of beating the disease, Sam needs clinical treatment in America.
On the 4th January 2013 Christine and Carl Shaw’s beautiful little boy Sam was diagnosed with high risk neuroblastoma, a highly aggressive form of childhood cancer. Just 5 days later, Sam’s parents received the devastating news that their son’s cancer was classed as stage 4, meaning it had spread from the main tumour to Sam’s bones and bone marrow.
The long term survival rate for children with high risk neuroblastoma remains at less than 40%, which is around half the average survival rate for childhood cancers. To give Sam the best chance of beating neuroblastoma for good, his oncologist at Manchester Children’s Hospital has recommended that Sam receives immunotherapy treatment. The most successful treatment uses the antibody ch14-18, and cytokines IL-2 and GM-CSF, trialled in America and proven by the Children’s Oncology Group to increase children’s chance of survival by 20%. This Immunotherapy treatment will help stimulate Sam’s immune system so that his own body should be able to recognise and attack the neuroblastoma if it was to return. This is the main worry with this deadly disease, where the relapse rates are high.
The treatment Sam will receive in the United States is not available in the same format in the UK. The proposed treatment and associated costs of £250,000 will not be funded by the NHS which is why Sam needs our help.
Ellie and I will set off on the 127 mile cycle from Liverpool on the morning off the 1st of September, completing it within a day. The plan is to stay in Liverpool overnight and set off from Liverpool Docks at 0600 arriving in Leeds between 1800 and 2000.
Please dig deep and donate what you can!!