On 21st June I will be one of three little Blanties doing a 10 mile walk to raise money for breast cancer research. Me, my niece Vicky and my great niece Molly would really appreciate your support.

The wretched 'Big C' has affected our family far too many times and by doing this walk we hope to raise funds that will contribute to future research and treatments.

Vicky has her own story and we are all very proud of her courage and resilience. As I walk with her I will also be thinking of other survivors and those that we have sadly lost to cancer.

My Mum fought breast cancer for several years but we lost her just after my 14th birthday. This August will mark 40 years since she died. She had already lost her mother and sister Pat a few years earlier to cancer. In 2016 we then lost Aunty Pam, her remaining sister and tragically, a month later, my cousin Michelle - all to bloody cancer. There are other close relatives and fiends too that have been struck by cancer – some who are sadly no longer with us and some who, thankfully, still are.

We all know people that have had the ‘Big C’ diagnosis but we’ve perhaps not all seen the suffering that many cancer patients have to endure: receiving the terrifying news and all the fear and anxiety that comes with it; the effects of treatment - hair loss is common but then there’s the skin burns, loss of appetite, loss of bodily functions; and finally the chronic pain that has to be managed with morphine which means that in their final few days they are completely ‘out of it’.

Quite frankly I have seen enough of this suffering first hand so I do this in the hope that there will be more survivors and less people suffering and losing their battles in the near future.

Thank you for anything you can spare in aid of this very worthy cause 🙏.