As neighbours who began to try to run for a bit of social fun and fitness in our fifties, and occasionally do the odd ParkRun, neither of us had ever contemplated running a marathon until we were inspired by a young boy and his family, who have been through so much in the past 18 months.

Bodhi Peckham was just 3 years old when he was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia in November 2022. Since then, he has endured hundreds of treatments and hospital visits, medications, blood transfusions, steroids and chemotherapy, spent time in ICU wards, and weeks in hospital - with no one knowing if he'd pull through. But true to his warrior spirit, he's tackled all that he's been through so far with incredible bravery, resilience and spirit - and mostly with a smile on his face.

During one hospital stay Bodhi popped his pants on his head rather than his bum, and the image his mum shared with their family and friends inspired many of them to stand in solidarity with him and send back photos of themselves with pants on their own heads. #Pants to Leukaemia was born: his devastated but determined mum, Hannah Peckham, recognised the moment as an opportunity for them to raise awareness and funds to find a kinder cure for this life-threatening illness, and hopefully to ultimately save more lives.

Bodhi’s courage and irrepressible spirit inspired us to get brave ourselves and commit to helping raise funds to help the thousands of children who are diagnosed with this devastating disease. So, here we are, aiming to run our very first (and probably last!) marathon in Lisbon on 6th October 2024; hoping we can be as brave, strong and resilient as Bodhi.

So, for Bodhi, and all the young - and not-so-young - people fighting this cruel disease, we'd love to make a difference, and to help Leukaemia UK find a kinder cure.

Thank you for your support and whatever you can pledge to help. It is so much appreciated, and hopefully, it will ultimately one day stop leukaemia devastating lives.

So, if you want to support the vital work of Leukaemia UK, please donate today, and help us, and Bodhi, to kick leukaemia’s ass! 🙏

🩲 donate via Just Giving link

If you can help to get more people involved:

🩲 Take a picture of you or a willing subject wearing a 'brief bonnet' aka pants on your head (the dafter the better)

🩲 briefly explain what you are doing and why and tag the link

🩲 nominate a friend (or 5) to do the same

🩲 if you can, please tag @h.j.peckham and use #postyourpants #pantstoleukaemia #teambodhi too!

Now show us your pants ...

If you’d like to know more, follow @h.j.peckham on Instagram or visit www.leukaemiauk.org.uk

Someone in the UK is diagnosed with a blood cancer every 16 minutes. Blood cancer is the fifth most common type of cancer in the UK. Leukaemia UK believes research has the power to stop leukaemia from devastating lives. They support those affected by leukaemia and other blood cancers through the physical, psychological and emotional uncertainty that may come with a diagnosis, working to fund innovative and effective research for better treatments and care.

Despite decades of incredible progress, only half of leukaemia patients live longer than five years after their diagnosis.

By bringing together the leukaemia community, Leukaemia UK is aiming to accelerate progress through life-changing research, awareness and advocacy, doing everything we can to make sure that the next person with leukaemia has the best possible experience of diagnosis, treatment and care.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and 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. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.