On Wednesday 12th October we, Haverhill Young Chamber, will be doing a 16 mile walk along the Roman road from Wandlebury to Haverhill in support of Bone Cancer Awareness Week which runs from the 8th - 15th October 2011. 

 

We have chosen to support the Bone Cancer Research Trust (BCRT) because primary bone cancers are the most common form of teenage cancer in the UK.  Local teenager Jessica Gower died aged just 14 years shortly before Christmas having fought bone cancer for just 16 months.  Some pupils from our school knew Jess personally and wanted to do something to help. 

 

In addition to the walk, we are also conduct assemblies in school to help raise awareness of this form of cancer, encouraging other young people to be aware of symptoms and the importance of early diagnosis.  Symptoms are often dismissed by doctors as growing pains and it can take numerous visits to get an accurate diagnosis, time these children do not have. 

 

The money being raised for BCRT has already had a positive impact on treatments for bone cancer.  A new drug, Mifamurtide, has just been approved which has been shown to improve 5 year survival rates from 55% to 80%.  The BCRT campaigned in support of this drug approval.  It is the first advance in osteosarcoma treatment in 25 years. 

 

It would be wonderful if you would support us by making a donation to our Just Giving page and we would like to thank you for generously supporting us in this worthy cause.

 

Haverhill Young Chamber

 

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 - We raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.