The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity solely supports the ground-breaking work and life-saving cancer treatments undertaken by the Royal Marsden hospital. I feel hugely connected to this cause as my mum is currently receiving her treatment from The Royal Marsden. Please help me to support this amazing charity that changes the lives of so many.

In June 2017 my lovely mum was diagnosed with the extremely rare stage 4 small bowel cancer that had spread to her peritoneum. She was told that this was terminal, and that the average life expectancy is 3 years.

In the months leading up to this diagnosis, mum had lost over 2 stone in weight, been unable to eat and had been experiencing severe nausea for several weeks. After more than 20 rounds of two different types of chemotherapy, scan results showed in April 2018 that the chemo was no longer working effectively; that the cancer was progressing; and that her options were beginning to run out. She was even told by one surgeon in July that she had weeks rather than months to live.

Luckily, she was made aware of a new clinical trial using a pioneering treatment called immunotherapy being carried out by the Royal Marsden in London. After DNA tests and a nerve-wracking wait, we were told that mum would be an ideal candidate for this trial, as she has a particular genetic flaw in her cancer that the immunotherapy would target. 

As she was so ill by this point, when she went in to start the trial, she was kept in as an inpatient at The Royal Marsden for over two months during the summer. Very gradually, mum’s health slowly started to improve and she was able to come home in late September. In this time, she went from being on intravenous food for months, back to being able to eat food normally again.

Mum’s health has continued to improve and in mid-October she had the first scan since the start of the trial to review her cancer, which amazingly showed that there had been a dramatic reduction in the visible cancer and a considerable restoration of the health of her digestive system. These results have massively exceeded any expectations we could have had. Just maybe, this pioneering treatment is having a curative effect on mum’s cancer?! 

Although mum’s original prognosis has not yet changed, this trial has given us the first bit of good news we’ve had regarding her cancer. For the first time since she was diagnosed we have real hope, and mum has her life back.

I hope you will all support me over the next 6 months whilst I take on the training involved for my first marathon. My family and I will be forever grateful to the Royal Marsden for what they have done so far for my mum. Nothing would make me happier than to run the 2019 London Marathon for this incredible cause - to raise awareness and funds to help continue their work towards a future where no one has to be told that they, or someone they love, has incurable cancer – and to have my mum there on the day at the finish line.

Any support you can give towards this great cause will be hugely appreciated. Thank you.