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Following his lifetime of having Wiskott-Aldrich Syndrome, a blood disorder which had no cure at his birth and meant he had a life expectancy of 25 years, Richard, my brother was diagnosed with cancer of the lymph nodes in 2010.  This diagnosis was an inevitable result of the underlying condition with which he had lived his life.

He underwent six sessions of chemotherapy to kill the cancer and as a last resort to kill his immune system so he could have a bone marrow transplant.  

During the 18 months of treatment, Richard was close to dying twice as all treatment options available to him were exhausted and in the words of the doctors "it was down to him and his will to live".  Twice I'd said my goodbyes and twice he refused to be defeated. 

Richard recovered and slowly over the last 6 years he's built himself back up and lives each and every day to the fullest he can.  Richard has dedicated himself to raising funds for Miles for Men and is now one of the charity Directors.  He does this so he can support as many people as possible who face the same battle he fought.

I never dared dream of this day, when I can feel confident in looking ahead a few months and be able to do something which is my way of saying thank you to all those who gave him back to us.

In recognition of the battle he fought, last year I successfully completed three events for his chosen charity, Miles for Men.

I ran the 40 mile Lyke Wake challenge across the moors,  the Great North Run and finished with a Hardmoors half marathon.  This year I decided to continue my running, having completed the 40 mile Lyke Wake Challenge again in July I am tomorrow running the Great North Run as part of the Miles for Men team.  I have also roped Sacha and Joshua in this year, they will both run the Roseberry Topping race later this month and Joshua will then run the Run Fit Hartlepool 10k in October.

Richard's fight is the bravest thing we have ever seen and we are determined as a family to continue my fundraising to reach over £1000.  

Please give as generously as you can.  Every penny raised by Miles to Men, goes to somebody like Richard and his family who needs their help at their most difficult time.