On my 31st birthday I was told that I had cancer.  After an operation, three months later I was back at work. And now, another lifetime on, at the ripe old age of 62, I am still here.  I was "lucky" to have contracted testicular cancer, which if discovered early (as mine was) has a survival rate of over 99%.

In October 2003 my father-in-law, Arthur Stovell, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Arthur suffered from the effects of surgery and various other medical interventions, before succumbing to the cancer when he died in June 2005. He is still loved and very much missed by us all. Arthur's case is typical of a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer. Despite the very best work of researchers and doctors, the chances of you being alive five years after a diagnosis are still only 7%.

So, it is in Arthur's memory that on Sunday August 4 this year I will be joining with thousands of other riders to cycle the 100-mile course from London's Olympic Park, around the leafy lanes of Surrey, and back to London to finish on The Mall. I am hoping to raise a good deal of money to support the excellent work of Pancreatic Cancer UK, as they continue to fund research into this most insidious of diseases. As it happens, Arthur's ashes were scattered over his youthful stomping ground, at the top of Box Hill, so I shall give him more than a passing nod when I make it up those zig-zag bends!

Please support this fund-raising effort by giving as much as you can. 

Many thanks,

Tom.

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