I need your help in raising some serious money on behalf ofthe UCL Cancer Institute Research Centre. All being well, I aim to complete a 50 km walk and 50 mile cycle ride on consecutive weekends later this month. These events are part of programme of fundraising being undertaken this year by the company I work for, NLP, in order to raise £50,000 for local charities in celebration of our 50th year in planning.

The challenges will take place across two consecutive weekends in June. First, the bike ride between London and Brighton on Saturday 17th and then the 10-14 hour walk along the Grand Union Canal somewhere between London and Birmingham the following weekend.

To spur me through this double 50 challenge I have chosen to raise money for the UCL Cancer Institute Research Centre. The Institute is a state-of-the-art facility and undertakes cutting-edge, life saving research into cancer. The work focuses especially on difficult hard to reach cancers – such as brain and lung cancer - which are more difficult to treat. The Institute has gone from strength to strength but, like all such facilities, it is always constrained by lack of funds. All donations, large or small, create a much-needed valuable source of funding for research and vital equipment.

Through NLP, I have links to the Institute having been involved in successfully gaining planning permission at appeal for a cutting edge "Bioinformatics Centre" for genome research last year. I am now offering my personal support (and hopefully that of my amazing friends and family) to help the Trust's mission to defeat cancer.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.