Golden Hearts is a group of colleagues from the Cardiac Physiology team at the Golden Jubilee University National Hospital within NHS Scotland. Every year, the team comes together each April to raise funds for a particular charity. Previous charities include Ronald McDonald House to say thanks for the support they provided a colleague while her daughter had a lengthy hospital admission and MND Scotland in memory of a colleague's loved one.

This year the charity will be the Beatson Cancer Charity after one of the Cardiac Physiologists - Phil - was diagnosed with a Myeloproliferative Neoplasm, a rare form of blood cancer. He wanted to raise funds to help the charity deliver a unique and patient-focused approach of care to cancer patients and help change the lives of those who are affected by the disease every day.

About the Beatson Cancer Charity

Beatson Cancer Charity supports people affected by cancer, every step of the way. We make the journey easier by transforming the way cancer care is funded and delivered. We provide services, as well as funding specialists, research and education to invest in a better future for cancer patients and their families.

From the hospital wards, right to the heart of the communities that The Beatson West of Scotland Cancer Centre serves, we believe everyone should experience cancer with care, with love and with hope. We are with our patients and their families for every step of the journey.

By working within NHS environments, Beatson Cancer Charity is ideally placed to understand the needs of patients and staff. We respond by providing services and funding that enhance and strengthen NHS care and enable patients and their families to be helped swiftly and compassionately. At the same time our independence as a charity allows us to develop and extend our services further into the heart of Scottish communities to support more people with cancer before, during and after treatment.

Amongst patients and the wider community, we are best known for our award-winning Wellbeing Centre and specialist support at The Beatson West of Scotland Cancer Centre and across hospitals in five health boards. While clinical and research professionals recognise us for our ongoing commitment to more effective cancer services, funding additional specialist staff and supporting cutting-edge cancer research and education.

All our work is made possible by our supporters. It is their generosity which allows Beatson Cancer Charity to deliver an innovative and patient-focused approach to cancer care and change the lives of those affected by the disease every day.

About Myeloproliferative Neoplasms

Myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs) are types of blood cancer that begin with an abnormal mutation (change) in a stem cell in the bone marrow. The change leads to an overproduction of blood cells and leads to abnormal changes of the bone marrow. They can strike at any age, have no known cause and a wide range of symptoms and outlooks. Sometimes the disease progresses slowly, however there is no cure for MPNs and is classified as a chronic cancer.

There are several types of myeloproliferative neoplasms. The main types are:

- Primary Myelofibrosis, causing thickening or scarring of the fibers inside bone marrow, which can decrease the production of red blood cells and cause anemia.

- Polycythemia Vera, causing overproduction of red blood cells in the bone marrow, which then build up in the blood.

- Essential Thrombocythemia, causing the number of platelets in the blood to be much higher than normal, increasing the risk of thrombotic events such as heart attacks and strokes.

- Acute Myeloid Leukemia is a rare progression of MPNs, which left untreated, results in a median survival of 8.5 months