Into Kerala now, but still some 500 km to go... Remember, it's never too late to donate!
We are now on the road, currently in Panaji, the capital of Goa! Feel free to track our progress on www.journeytothepoint.com, and please check Alex'es own progress on www.protonbeamalex.com.
In the middle of September, we will embark on a mammoth sponsored bike ride from Mumbai to Kanyakumari, at the very Southern tip of India. We will pedal over 2000 km, slightly further than the distance from London to Rome, and a lot further than our average 5 mile commute to work. However, there’s a first time for everything.
So why are we braving the heat, the flies, the mosquitoes, exhaustion and a little bit of saddle sore? We're doing this to help the brain tumour charity brainstrust and in particular Alex Jones. 34 year old Alex has been fighting his own private battle with brain tumours and cysts the majority of his adult life, undergoing a series of 14 operations. He fought back, and incredibly raised over £20,000 for the Brain & Spine Foundation by running two London Marathons in 2004 and 2005. After a biopsy in September 2008, an astrocytoma brain tumour of an unknown kind was discovered in his cerebellum.
Alex'es consultants have told him that due to the awkward location of the new tumour, it is not treatable by conventional radiotherapy or surgery. So they have referred him to Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) for the Proton Therapy he needs to save his life. This extremely precise procedure allows treatment of the tumour with little or no collateral damage to the surrounding tissue.
Currently Proton Therapy is only available in the UK for the treatment of eye tumours, despite there being 1400 people every year who would benefit greatly from this procedure. The NHS Commissioning Group funds 40 people per year to go to centres around the world, however due to this limited number their diagnostic criteria are strict and rigid. Alex'es brain tumour is a very rare form so is not considered eligible. His family have to find £160,000. For further information, please see http://www.protonbeamalex.com/about.php and http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/8070998.stm for the coverage of his story by the BBC.
The Proton Beam Alex treatment fund is supported by the registered UK charity brainstrust, and 80% of the money we raise will go towards Alex'es treatment, with the remaining 20% going directly to the charity. This fantastic charity aid many people like Alex in their quest for life-saving treatment. They support patients beyond diagnosis to improve the treatment, care and outcomes of patients who are diagnosed with a brain tumour. They campaign and advocate on behalf of the brain tumour community, fund technology for treatment and the medical research that translates into clinical practice.
So please be generous and help us to give something to a remarkable young man and a good cause. Every little bit makes a big difference, even if it is only £1 for every 100 km we cycle! It will certainly help propel us up those hills! You can keep an eye on our progress through our dedicated website http://journeytothepoint.com/ and Facebook group with the same name. Offline donations are also absoloutely fine, just email one of us with the details.
