Thank you for visiting my page. I've chosen to run the 2024 London Marathon for Sarcoma UK, a national charity that funds vital research, offers support for anyone affected by sarcoma cancer and campaigns for better treatments. 

My Mum is diagnosed with Leiomyosarcoma (LMS) - first diagnosis was in 2018. She has had a number of operations on her liver to prevent the spread but unfortunately they have been unsuccessful. By the end of 2022 she was advised she required double strength chemo, commencing at the beginning of 2023. She became extremely ill after 3 rounds and was given the devastating timescale of 12/18 months in June of this year. She is making the most of her time now, with family days out, holidays & buying handbags!! But most importantly making plenty of memories with the family, mainly our daughter who she absolutely idolises! She is hoping to be fit enough to join me at the finish line in London 2024 and make some amazing memories over the weekend! 

I’ve spent hours and hours researching and found there is very limited information on Sarcoma, specifically LMS due to its rare form. She is under the care of Dr Ali at The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre in Liverpool. They have been brilliant but on the whole, Sarcoma data seems well behind that of ‘traditional’ cancer treatments.

On to me, never run a marathon before! Longest I’ve run is 10k. I’m 34, turning 35 in August, most challenging thing for me is that I’ve had 3 x ACL reconstructions over the years - so it’s gona plenty of stretching & icing! I have a 3 year old daughter & 12 year old stepson and work full time - my wife works shifts so finding time to train around childcare & her work is gona be tough but I’m ready for it! Might help me get rid of the dad bod too!!! I’ve been a sporadic regular runner but usually give up after a few weeks and retire to the sofa & takeaways - so training through the winter months is really going to test my will power! I’m running the marathon with my brother in law Paul so we will support each other throughout, he’s a PE teacher so he’s defo at an advantage already! We are aiming for a sub 4 hour time 🏃🏻🏃🏻

Anyway, thanks for reading and please please give what you can - life is financially tough for most people nowadays so no matter how small or big, I know Sarcoma UK will make the most of every little penny to support people like my mum and their families in the future and keep fighting the fight against this horrible disease! 

Thanks for reading & hopefully supporting - head over to my Insta & Strava pages where I’ll be documenting my journey and hopefully tapping into some experts knowledge to help me through it! 

Insta - dandan.themarathonman

Strava - https://www.strava.com/athletes/122023023

Sarcoma is a type of cancer that develops in the bone and soft tissue. It is difficult to diagnose and one of the hardest to treat. By supporting me, we can help change this. Your donation will help researchers find answers, keep the specialist Support Line open, and raise awareness to improve treatment and standards of care. Your donations go so far in helping the sarcoma community: £1 Could cover the cost of 10 texts to the support line. £10 Could be used to buy microscope slides to look at cells in minute detail.  £30 Could fund one hour of use of a high-powered laboratory microscope. £150 Could fund the support line for a week. 

Thank you for your support.