Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

In 2008, the income of the UK’s leading feline charity (Cats Protection) was £36.4M, while that of the Donkey Sanctuary was £27.2M.  In 2008/2009, the income of the Cystic Fibrosis Trust (the only UK charity dedicated to every aspect of CF, from helping the families of the 8,500 sufferers adjust to diagnosis to funding cutting edge research) was £9.3M.

Consequently I've decided that I will use my 2010 bout of Marathon stupidity to raise money for the Cystic Fibrosis Trust.  My motivation is simple: a close friend's daughter was diagnosed with CF shortly after her 3^rd birthday and I have been so impressed by the way they have approached the challenges involved that I would like help.

The CF Trust is currently funding a gene therapy research programme which has just completed its stage 1 clinical trials.  The results have been extremely promising, and offer the possibility of a treatment which (when periodically administered) will allow the lungs to function normally, thus arresting the cycles of infection which progressively cause irreversible and ultimately fatal damage to the lungs of those with CF.  The Trust is now poised to embark on the funding (at a cost of about £10M) of a lengthy multi-dose trial which will be but the next of a number of hurdles to be surmounted before any product can be released “to market.  At the same time, the Trust is funding the early research stages of a “Wave 2 product which may prove to be 100 times more effective than the product presently being trialled.  In short, the next few years could revolutionise the treatment of and prognosis for all young children diagnosed with CF, if – and only if – the Trust is able to raise the necessary funding.

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.