In May 2017, my younger brother, Ben, was diagnosed with brain cancer.

Whilst pot-washing in the Easter holidays, Ben collapsed and hit his head, fracturing his skull. He was rushed to A&E, and had a CT scan. The scan showed more than expected - there was a ‘shadow’ on his brain which the doctors were very anxious to investigate further. Several further scans showed that Ben had a high grade brain tumour, which had induced a seizure and caused him to collapse. After being transferred to Queens Medical Centre in Nottingham, a treatment plan was quickly established. Within weeks, Ben had undergone surgery to remove the tumour, and had commenced a 6 week course of radiotherapy and just over a year of chemotherapy.

Our lives were turned completely upside down, and this is where CLIC Sargent helped. Whilst Ben was undergoing treatment, they provided critical support to Ben, myself, and our family, making these past months far more bearable than they otherwise would have been.

It has been very difficult, but thankfully, as of August 2018, Ben was declared officially cancer free! This news was such an incredible relief, however his cancer journey doesn’t stop here - Ben will experience symptoms and attend regular check ups, scans and hospital appointments for a long time into the foreseeable future, but CLIC Sargent will undoubtedly be on hand to help.

One of the most valuable facilities CLIC Sargent provided us with was accommodation for our family at Billy's House. Billy’s House is a house within walking distance of Queen’s Medical Centre and a short drive to Nottingham City Hospital, the two hospitals at which Ben was attending up to several times per day for 6 weeks during radiotherapy. Billy’s House is set up with living space for up to six families with children undergoing cancer treatment, and it was completely free of charge, meaning that we were able to stay as a family with Ben throughout the course of his radiotherapy, reducing both the financial and emotional distress of his treatment.

In terms of further emotional support, Tamsin, our CLIC Sargent social worker, has been there to help us with every concern, big or small - she helped my mum apply for time off work care for Ben, offered counselling for all members of our family, and has been there consistently to listen and support us in any way she could. CLIC Sargent also help in other ways, for example, we were given a grant to cover travel costs to and from hospital throughout the year, and they also have connections to many other smaller charities across the country, offering Ben a collection of experiences that have brought positivity to his time going through cancer treatment.

Hopefully you can see why CLIC Sargent is a charity that has become extremely close to my heart over the past year and a half, and how vastly important it is in the lives of many others - without the work of charities such as these, cancer's impact on the lives of children and their families doesn't bear thinking about. 

Therefore, my mum and I have decided to run the London Marathon in 2019, in order to raise money for CLIC Sargent to allow them to help other families in the same invaluable way they have helped us. My mum has wanted to run the marathon since she was younger than I am now, so we finally decided to do it together this year for such a worthy cause:) We are very excited to be able to give back to CLIC Sargent in this way and really hope that you can support us in our fundraising, thank you so much!!!