Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

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On 20th November 2008 I lost my mum, Helen Pauling, to pancreatic cancer. Mum had only been diagnosed with this agonising disease five weeks earlier so her death left all of the family reeling from the shock of how quickly she had been taken from us. I always understood that cancer was a potential killer, but didn't quite realise how agressive it could be until I started learning more about this form of the disease.

I won't bore you with the details, but the survival rate for pancreatic cancer stands at just 3%, hugely lower than the survival rates for other forms of cancer. This indicates to me that as much money as possible needs to be channelled into research for finding a cure and for supporting the suffererers and their families. To this end, I will be jumping out of a plane at 10,000 on the first anniversary of Mum's death, 20th November 2009, and would ask that you sponsor me as much as you can afford to. Those of you who knew Mum will know that she was a very special person so it would mean a lot to her to know that her death will have helped other people to suffer less.

On the downside, I am absolutely petrified at the thought of doing this! I think it will probably be a case of shutting my eyes and being pushed out of the plane! But as I've said to my mate, Gill, who is also mad enough to jump out of the same plane on the same day, what's life without a few sphincter-clenching moments!

So dig deep and donate now!

 

June