On 12th December 2015, my brother in law Thomas Bradshaw sadly passed away aged just 23 after being diagnosed with Neuroendocrine Cancer in March of the same year. He spent long periods of time in the Teenage Cancer Trust ward at Weston Park hospital in Sheffield where the treatment that he received from the staff there was nothing short of incredible. At such a difficult time, this amazing charity helped Thomas and all of his family to spend time together in more comfortable surroundings. The staff did everything that they could to support and continue to do so even today. It is for this reason that I feel so passionately about raising awareness of the work that they do. Equally, I have seen first hand how any money raised for Teenage Cancer Trust can make a difference to young people and their families.

Before being diagnosed with Cancer, Thomas had recently started working for Phillips in what he would describe as his dream job. Prior to this, Thomas had spent 6 years in the RAF from being just 16 years old. During this time, he spent a number of months in the Falklands Islands and was rightly proud of everything that he achieved. Undoubtedly, Thomas's proudest moment came in December 2014 when his daughter Willow was born. During the hard times that were to follow, Willow provided some much needed joy for Thomas and the rest of his family. 

Last year, with the support of family and friends, I managed to raise around £3500 as I ran London Marathon 2017 for Teenage Cancer Trust. I loved the experience so much that I applied to run for Teenage Cancer Trust again in 2018 and thankfully I have been successful in gaining a place. I'm looking to raise at least £2000 for this incredibly worthy charity. 

Please feel free to share my story. On a daily basis, the staff working for this charity are working tirelessly to improve the lives of those suffering from this terrible disease. Anything that you can give is amazing.

Thank you

Mark