Please support and join me on this journey where together we can make a change to so many people’s lives.

This summer I’ll be joining a team of Amateur Cyclists, setting out to conquer all eleven stages of the Tour de France Femmes Aves Zwift one-day ahead of the pros. We are doing this to raise awareness for the plight of those battling the life-threatening illness Leukemia, and the need for those Adults and Children alike to have access to life saving treatments. This charity rolls out programs that do exactly that: giving access to treatments that can improve and save lives.

I’m not a British citizen, I don’t live in the UK, so why do I feel so involved? This illness has touched my family directly when my British husband’s cousin, Dean Clark, died of Leukemia at the age of two. He left behind a family that’s learned to accept and live with the grief of losing him.

Moreso, as parents of a neurodivergent daughter we’ve encountered first-hand what it means to have access to lifesaving treatment. Ten years ago, our 8-month-old daughter was dying from a severe heart condition, AVSD Complete. We had to flee from the country where we lived at the time on the first available flight to Singapore, only there could they operate on her on Christmas Eve. We were privileged to have had the financial support and connections to help get her there and be operated on. Without the operation then, she would not have been with us by the new year...

This brought home to our family the message which this charity is advocating: the importance of funding innovative trials that are aimed at enhancing access for everyone. The results of these trials are shared throughout the medical world internationally. Leukemia doesn’t know borders, it can touch anyone’s life at any moment, whatever their gender, age or wherever they live. Funding these trials in the UK will have a global ripple effect.

To raise awareness of these trials, Cure-Leukaemia has decided to support an all-women’s cycling team to broadcast their cause, and by doing so are sending out a clear message of the importance of inclusion and belonging; women have a significant role to play in cycling, and in all sports generally. It is a cause near to my heart. I took up cycling at an amateur race level as a middle-aged woman (47) and have experienced first-hand what we as women still have to face, as there’s a long way to go when it comes to equal recognition within the sport. Visibility and access are key parts to resolving this, just like with the trials so urgently needed for Leukemia patients and their families.

As recent as September 2024 the ATICUS Network (Accelerating Trials In Children Undergoing Stem Cell Transplant) launched a revolutionising clinical trial, granting access to children and their families battling blood cancer. It’s a pioneering collaboration between 11 leading UK Children’s Hospitals.

Cure Leukaemia helps blood cancer patients access pioneering drug and transplant treatments through funding a network of specialist research nurses across the UK. Without these nurses, who ensure patients are monitored and cared for, clinical trials of these new treatments would not be possible. Patients who have exhausted standard treatment options would miss out on the latest, potentially lifesaving therapies.

Every penny raised for Cure Leukaemia helps save lives as it hastens progress globally towards the eradication of all forms of blood cancer.

You, and your family and friends can all support and be part of this! Please don’t hesitate to reach out and follow me on the various social media outlets detailed below:

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