In February, I’ll be taking on Everest in the Alps, one of the toughest endurance challenges in the world.

Over four days, I’ll be climbing 8,848m, the height of Mount Everest. It’s quite the uphill slog, freezing conditions, high altitude, for up to 11 hours a day, often longer, whatever it takes to stay on track. We will be burning around 10,000 calories a day - the same as running three back-to-back marathons.

The difficulty is deliberate. It reflects, in a small way, the endurance children and families face when living with a brain tumour - the uncertainty, the exhaustion, the need to keep going long after others would stop. The climb is symbolic of that fight, and every metre gained fuels research that brings us closer to breakthroughs.

I’m doing this to raise vital funds for The Brain Tumour Charity and the Everest Centre, which supports research into paediatric low-grade brain tumours. The Everest Centre is funded solely by the Everest in the Alps charity which was set up by my friends Rob and Tanya after their son Toby was diagnosed in 2012. So far EIA has raised over £6m which goes directly to funding research and treatment for paediatric brain tumours.

When I'm up there in the hills, I'll also be thinking of my good friend, Al Vachon, that got to know while we were both teaching in Miyagi. A few years after leaving Japan we met up for a climbing trip to Peru, where he proved the perfect travel partner; a laid-back daredevil, as reliable as he was mischievous, he would have been perfect for this adventure in the Alps. Sadly Al fell ill not long after marrying Anita and becoming a father to Harrison, and the treatment he received for his brain tumour was not successful. It's been 6 years now and I still can't quite process it.

Every donation helps drive progress and brings hope to families affected. Please support me if you can.