<p>&nbsp;</p> <p class="MsoNormal">It's a cliche, but all of us at one time or another in our lives will have been affected by cancer, either directly or indirectly. One of my close friends is currently battling a rare form of cancer known as Ewings Sarcoma. For those who know the friend in question, please do not let him know about this group or any of the information contained within this message - I think it would be a nice surprise if we inform him closer the time of the race :)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">In short, I am in awe of my friend's courage and determination towards fighting his illness - he has been through a hell of a lot (indeed, he continues to go through a hell of a lot!), but he has reserves of mental and physical toughness that most people just don't have.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">The Royal Marsden Hospital have been treating him since he was diagnosed (one and half years ago), and they continue to be extremely supportive, in particular Prof. Ian Judson. When it became apparent that my friend's chemotherapy treatment was not working and that he would need to apply to the PCT to obtain funding for a more aggressive (and extremely expensive) type of chemotherapy, Prof. Judson had already obtained permission from the Royal Marsden to fund my friend's new treatment while he waited to hear back from the PCT (who did indeed agree to fund his treatment).</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I felt compelled to show my support for both my friend and the Royal Marsden Hospital (and of course all sufferers of cancer) by entering an 8-hour endurance kart race and donating to Prof. Judson's Cancer Research fund at Royal Marsden Hospital <a href="http://www.royalmarsden.org/Campaign/Home/">http://www.royalmarsden.org/Campaign/Home/</a></p> <p class="MsoNormal">*NB: Professor Judson does not have his own charity page on the Royal Marsden website but you can read about him here&nbsp;<a href="http://www.royalmarsden.nhs.uk/consultants-teams-wards/staff/consultants-g-l/professor-ian-judson">http://www.royalmarsden.nhs.uk/consultants-teams-wards/staff/consultants-g-l/professor-ian-judson</a></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.icr.ac.uk/research/team_leaders/Judson_Ian/index.shtml">http://www.icr.ac.uk/research/team_leaders/Judson_Ian/index.shtml</a></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Why karting? In truth, myself and the other members of our team wanted to get away from the more common fund raisers such as dinners, marathons and sky dives - we wanted to approach this in a slightly different way so we decided on karting.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">For those of you who have driven a kart, you'll know it's very physically demanding. Those of you who haven't... trust me when I say it's not a case of just sitting there and going round and round.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">In total there will be 5 of us competing as a team racing against other teams, which means each of us will spend approximately 1 hr 30 minutes in the kart. This will be extremely gruelling and tiring, and in our humble opinion is worthy of sponsorship.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The race will take place at Buckmore Park in Kent, on 4 December 2011 (a Sunday). We realise that this is very close to Xmas, and while we appreciate that the timing is not ideal, it would mean a great deal to us if you could dig deep and donate.</span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">&nbsp; </span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Even the smallest amounts would be greatly appreciated, as it all adds up in the end :)</span></p> <p>&nbsp;</p>