Thanks for taking the time to visit the Team XL JustGiving page.

 

 

On the 21 April 2013 a team of six from XL will be running in the Virgin London Marathon.  In addition one of our team, Teresa, is also running the 2013 Brighton Marathon.  We are aiming to raise £50,000 for Nicki’s Smile, our Charity of the Year.

 

 

Nicki’s Smile, which is a fund of Pancreatic Cancer UK, was set up in memory of Nicki Blake who lost her two-year battle against pancreatic cancer in November 2010, aged just 33.  She left behind her husband Dan and 3-year-old son Joshua. 

 

 

Twenty months earlier Nicki was diagnosed with an advanced form of Neuroendocrine Pancreatic Cancer.  Tragically the cancer had already spread from the pancreas to her liver and bones and she was therefore inoperable.  She bravely fought the illness, enduring numerous cycles of treatment, however in the end this was to no avail.

 

 

Over a year before diagnosis Nicki had been to hospital with severe back and abdominal pain but the potential warning signs were missed and she was sent home.  Had the doctors identified the cancer then, Nicki may well have survived, but when it was finally diagnosed it was too late.

 

 

Pancreatic cancer is one of the most lethal cancers in the UK.  Over 8,000 people in the UK are diagnosed every year.  Of these, fewer than 20% survive more than a year and less than 3% live for more than 5 years.  Despite these horrifying statistics pancreatic cancer research remains chronically under-funded.  There’s a real problem with diagnosing the disease in time for effective treatment.

 

 

Nicki’s Smile aims to be a catalyst for improving life expectancy and survival rates for pancreatic cancer patients.  Since the charity’s launch in August 2011 over £300,000 has been raised, half of which is already funding a project, based in Cambridge and New York, researching how to identify symptoms more accurately to aid early diagnosis.  If Nicki’s Smile makes a difference to even one person, then Nicki Blake’s death will not have been in vain.

 

 

Please help us raise vital funds to support this extremely important cause.

 

 

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure.  Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails.  Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer.  So it’s the most efficient way to donate – We raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

 

 

So please dig deep and donate now.