Brian Henderson, 66, father of Sunderland-born footballing supremo Jordan Henderson has launched an appeal to help repay the NHS team which saved him after his cancer diagnosis in 2014, Brian's cancer was found in his tongue, throat and lymph glands.

Now, Brian, and his wife Donna, from Washington, are leading a campaign to raise £85,000 to buy a high-end endoscopy called a ‘Spectar EndoFlex System’.

The new equipment will be used by the specialist clinical team including doctors, nurses and speech and language therapists based within the Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) department at Sunderland Royal Hospital.

Brian and Donna have set up their own JustGiving page to collect for their local South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust, with more than £17,000 raised so far.

Donna successfully completed her15,000ft tandem skydive at Peterlee, Airfield in County Durham on Sunday, October 24, for the fund, which now stands at £26,000.00

WE ARE NOW LOOKING AT OUR NEXT FUNDRAISING EVENT, SO WATCH THIS SPACE.

Meanwhile Brian, with Jordan’s support, is auctioning off strips worn by the midfielder through fans’ groups, and social media.

Brian, who still undergoes regular checks, said: “We just want to repay the people who treated me and we want to raise it ourselves.“Donna had a parachute jump on her bucket list and when we decided we wanted to raise money, we thought that would be a good way to help.

“We want to get in as much as we can for to thank the ENT department for what they have done for me and to really help other people coming in with what I had and other conditions.

. “I know that 100% I would not be here if it was not for the specialist team in Sunderland and my wife.”

Donna added: “The reason for the jump is to give back a little bit of thanks to the ENT department.“The staff were absolutely instrumental in seeing Brian through his care and aftercare and without them I don’t think I would have got through it either.”

Grandfather-of-five, Brian’s care was led by Consultant Otolaryngologist and Head and Neck Surgeon, Mr Frank Stafford.

Mr Stafford said: “Brian is a great guy and, understandably, the fundraising work by him and Donna has been delayed by Covid. It is our absolute privilege to care for every single patient who needs our help but we know Brian has been keen to repay us in whatever way he can. We are of course extremely grateful for his support.”

Laura-Jayne Watson, Senior Specialist Speech and Language Therapist, added: “This piece of equipment would make a significant difference to our head and neck cancer patients at Sunderland Royal Hospital. “We would be able to provide our patients with timelier and more individualised swallow and voice assessment and intervention which would help to improve functional outcomes and quality of life.”

The JustGiving page for the appeal can be found via:

https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/brian-henderson?utm_id=1&utm_term=Ny7NDkaNk

Brian is sharing details of the strips being auctioned off via his Instagram account, which can be found via @daddyhendo14 and @anfieldrd96