I am running the Brighton Marathon on 14th April 2019 to celebrate my 5 years clear of Bowel Cancer.  I want to raise as much money as possible for the Big C Centre which is a fantastic local Norwich Charity that I and my family benefited from greatly during my cancer diagnoses & treatment.

In 2013 I was diagnosed with stage 3 Bowel cancer aged 34, a huge shock to me & all that knew me.  I very quickly had the many scans & tests necessary to confirm the treatment I would require to rid me of it.

I firstly had major surgery to remove the tumour & large part of my bowel & the creation of a temporary stoma.  A matter of 3 weeks later I underwent 7 months of gruelling weekly chemotherapy.  During the treatment I was unfortunate enough to suffer all side effects possible.  The most debilitating was the extreme joint pain meaning on many days I was unable to get out of bed, my husband often had to carry me to the bathroom.  During these dark days I never imagined being able to contemplate running a marathon!  I suffered with chorionic fatigue and this as been a side effect I have to now live with, learning what my body can manage has been a journey even to this day. 

I have always been a very positive person but I struggled at the end of my treatment mentally and am left living with anxiety now.  A cancer diagnoses is very much a life changing illness.  The team at the Big C Centre put me in touch with their councillor for a few sessions which have given me the tools to cope with anxiety.

Due to the surgery I had and living with a stoma meant I had a diet of no fibre, along with a huge quantity of steroids to stop my allergic reaction to the chemotherapy resulted in a 3 stone weight gain.  I have worked hard these last 2 years to lose the excess weight & began to see that running a marathon was perhaps a possibility once again.

During my treatment I benefited greatly from the Big C Centre, from supplying me useful information, holding nutritional seminars, complimentary massages & therapy, counselling,  providing many coffee’s, biscuits & tissues!  The Big C Centre and team were always welcoming and had time for me when I was overwhelmed by it all.  So this is why I have chosen to fundraise for them, so they can continue to help others.

I have created a 32 week training program which is a lot longer than most will train for but this allows me plenty of recovery to reduce the possibility of fatigue setting in.

Please dig deep & offer what sponsorship you can.