Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page. You can also follow me on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/barefootforbladdercancer

Every year in the UK, approximately 10,000 people are diagnosed with bladder cancer and the number of patients being treated for the disease is rising.

I was diagnosed  with bladder cancer in late October 2014. I have undergone surgery to remove a tumour and will be getting three-monthly check-ups to spot any recurrences which can unfortunately be quite common.

Bladder cancer is the 4th most common cancer in men and 11th most common in women. Over 5,000 people in this country lose their lives to this disease every year. That’s more people than are affected by many better known cancers, including leukaemia, kidney cancer, ovarian cancer, liver cancer, pancreatic cancer, cervical cancer and brain tumours. Each year more people die in the UK from bladder cancer than die in road accidents.

Despite this, there is very limited public awareness towards the disease and it is a relatively low priority on the public health agenda. It is still a cancer that is hardly ever talked about.

Fight Bladder Cancer is a charity dedicated to supporting people affected by bladder cancer, campaigning for greater awareness both in the general public and amongst the medical profession, and to supporting research into the causes, treatment and after care of bladder cancer.

Raising awareness about the symptoms of bladder cancer is important as an early diagnosis is vital in improving survival rates for this disease. Many people feel self-concious or embarrassed when talking about blood in their urine and this becomes a further barrier to approaching their GP for the first time.

I am going to be completely barefoot everywhere at the coldest time of the year and this is bound to attract some attention. If anyone asks me why I'm doing it I'll tell them about bladder cancer, my chosen charity and how they can donate.

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. So it’s the most efficient way to donate – saving time and cutting costs for the charity.