I am taking part in The Great Manchester Swim on Sunday 1st July at 9.30am.This is thanks to a friend of mine who is also taking part and suggested I join in. So I thought, why not, it can't be that hard to swim one mile in water, can it? How very wrong......

A future free from the fear of breast cancer

48,000 women in the UK each year are diagnosed with breast cancer. If we hear our doctor say those awful words, ‘you have breast cancer’, we want to know that we will have the best chance of recovery. Yet over 1,000 women lose their battle with breast cancer every month. There are some powerful and effective treatments available, but they do not work for every kind of breast cancer or for every person. And there are still some breast cancers that scientists don’t know how to beat.

Since 2008, at Breakthrough’s Research Unit in Manchester, we have been making giant strides in creating a world where women can recover from even the most aggressive forms of the disease. Based in the UK’s leading city for cancer research our team, led by the world-renowned Professor Michael Lisanti, is working to develop treatments that can stop breast cancer from spreading.

The time is coming when breast cancer will no longer be life-threatening!!!
A woman develops breast cancer. She goes to her doctor as soon as she finds the lump, and is diagnosed before the week is out. Doctors identify the exact type of breast cancer they’re dealing with, and prescribe a precisely-tailored treatment to knock it out without any toxic side effects.

 

She doesn’t feel sick or exhausted. Her hair doesn’t fall out. She doesn’t have to avoid people with coughs and colds. She doesn’t despair.

 

 

Instead, she can go about life as normal, feeling well, and knowing that the treatment is going to make the breast cancer go away. And stay away – sometimes with the help of different drugs over time.

 

Breakthrough scientists believe this could be the reality for some types of breast cancer within about ten years.

 

I have never swum in open water before, other than warm blue sea on holiday. I thought I had better start training, considering it is only 3 weeks away and I have not taken part in any 'full on' exercise apart from walking Hattie my Cockerpoo, for a long time. So I ventured to a training session at Salford Quays without the company of my friend as she was busy, as I thought I had better get a sense of how it feels to swim in very different conditions.

 

Once in the water I did start to panic and thought there was no way I could make it round the course. The thought of having the 'spotter' boat coming out to get me spurred me on to finish the equivalent of 16 lengths. To be fair, as much as I was scared, once out of the water I felt really good and found the experience very exhilarating. However I know how much training I have to do to be able to complete the challenge.

 

As the Fundraising Appeal Manager for the Manchester Research Unit, I want to raise money to help towards the vital research which is making a huge difference to women’s lives.

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

 

 

 

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.