Not many people know this but in September this year my father died at 56, 2 weeks before his 57th birthday. He had stomach problems and went to his doctor/the hospital on multiple occasions, only to be told each and every time that he probably had indigestion. Turns out he had bowel cancer. He went to the hospital for the final time at the end of August and demanded help. One week later he was diagnosed and told his cancer had reached stage 4- the stage which unfortunately meant nothing could be done. For the following two weeks his health deteriorated drastically until he died. There is plenty of help he could have had to prolong his life, but due to incredibly late diagnosis, nothing could be done. 

For this reason I am trying to raise money for a charity called Beating Bowel Cancer, who dedicate their time to raising awareness of the disease for early diagnosis, and providing support to families affected by it. They are saving lives. The two weeks before my dad's death were inexpressibly traumatic, so I can only wish that I'd had the time and energy to seek support from this wonderful charity. Regardless, the work they do is amazing and life saving so a clear winner to me! I'll be taking part in the Run Hackney half marathon of 21k (sorry but I'd rather not pass out so I can't do a full one) with two of my many wonderful friends Rukiya Newton and Ginelle Appau, on 10th May 2015. We'd really love if you could support us by donating anything at all! We don't have a specific target as anything helps but do really hope we'll be able to raise at least £800 for a charity that save lives. 

While I didn't plan to post a sob story, I do want people to understand that this disease is real! And I'm incredibly passionate about the fact that something as simple as sharing information could have changed the lives of my dad and my entire family. It may be too late for us but it isn't for others  thank you guys for your support anyway!! Wish us luck with training (we'll keep you posted), God knows how much we need it! 

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