With many of our colleagues and patients affected with cancer, this year we have decided to raise money for Cancer Research UK and here is why:

Nicola's Story:

30th September 2020 is a date now forever ingrained in my brain. I was diagnosed with stage 2b Triple Positive Breast cancer at 43.

Life was then turned upside down for me and my girls as I spent the next 9 months having chemotherapy, surgery and radiotherapy followed by a further 6 months of targeted chemo for my specific type of cancer as there was still some cancer cells present in what they removed during surgery.

This targeted chemotherapy, Kadcyla, was only FDA approved for primary breast cancer in 2019 and statistics say it can reduce risk of reoccurrence by up to 46%!

Cancer research is absolutely vital to continue improving treatments and giving hope to all those newly diagnosed or living with cancer.

Nothing will ever prepare you for hearing “those” words, but maybe one day with continued research those words may not be quite so devastating for the 1 in 2 of us affected.

Charlotte's Story:

December 6th 2023 is a day that will stay with me forever. After doing a random check the month earlier I found a small lump - not thinking as a fit, healthy 37 year old mum of 2 young boys it would be anything! However I made myself go and have it checked out. Weeks later on the 6th December I was given the news that my lump was in fact cancer.

I was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer, a type of breast cancer which is notoriously aggressive, difficult to treat and has the higher chance of reoccurrence. Luckily for me I had managed to find it before it had the chance to spread. After 2 lots of surgery, they were confident they had removed all of the cancer and I was given radiotherapy to reduce the risk of it returning.

At 37 I was told I was unlucky to have a cancer diagnosis so young, I feel like the luckiest unlucky person to receive my cancer diagnosis at such an early and treatable stage. Research is a vital tool for identifying new treatments for triple negative breast cancer and for improving long term prognosis to those faced with a diagnosis.

Last year we climbed snowdon at sunrise in the snow and rain! This year we have chosen to do a 20k coastal walk.

Any donation is appreciated no matter how big or small. Your donations will make a huge difference. Together we can help raise money for research and to fight cancer