In August, 16 of us will be riding 1400 miles to the four corners of Britain to raise money for the Children's Brain Tumour Research Centre (CBTRC) at the Queen's Medical Centre (QMC), Nottingham. We are doing this because brain tumours are the largest cause of children's cancer deaths in the UK, yet receive only 2% of cancer research funding . On average, children in the UK can wait up to three times longer for a diagnosis than in other developed countries, impacting survival rates and the likelihood that long term survivors will suffer disability. 

Several of the riders are riding in honour of children that have sadly died from brain tumours. I, on the other hand, am riding in honour of Eloise Mills, who has successfully recovered from an operation to remove her tumour and is now living a full and happy life.   As the symptoms of brain tumours can mimic the symptoms of many other conditions, they can be difficult to diagnose, and Eloise suffered progressive symptoms for over four years before the problem was identified and treated. The CBTRC has already done much to raise awareness, quicken diagnosis and apply new treatments and technology to improve cure rates, although they can do so much more. 

As you can see from the picture below, Eloise is a lovely, bright, and fun loving ten year old. She is also very fortunate to have benefited from the skill, care and expertise of the QMC, and her family continue to raise funds for CBTRC, so its pioneering work can help others.

Please lend your support to the CBTRC by sponsoring me on Life Cycle 4. Thanks.