I impulsively signed up for the London Marathon and, to my surprise, actually got one of the 20,000 places out of 840,000! So, I'm giving it my best shot! 🤣

Five years ago, my mum passed away, and like many of us, my family has been profoundly affected by cancer. You never think it will hit so close to home until it does. I'm sharing her story and running this marathon to raise awareness for this devastating disease.

Growing up, my family was perfect, and I was incredibly fortunate to be surrounded by such wonderful people. My mum was my best friend, and we spent nearly every night together. She was a one-in-a-million person who everyone adored, always making people laugh until they were on the floor. Life was great for all of us.

Then, in 2013, everything changed with a routine blood test. My mum was diagnosed in the early stages of what would become Multiple Myeloma (a type of blood/ bone marrow cancer) . By 2016, the disease had progressed, and her battle began. Initially, she responded well to treatments, but the cancer was relentless, returning stronger each time. She was consistently in and out of hospital whether for treatment or emergencies, sometimes spending as long as 6 months in hospital due to having such a low immune system. Hospitals very much were a normal day to day part of our lives throughout this whole time.

Eventually, in March 2019 we were told we had no options left but hospice care by which time the disease had left my mum paralysed from her breast bone down, weak and in immense pain requiring 24 hour continuous administration of ketamine and morphine. A few weeks later, at just 48 years old, my mum passed away with all of us by her side, leaving a huge void for us, not least for my youngest sister Maggie, who was only 13 years old at the time.

Despite everything, my mum remained incredibly positive and faced every challenge head-on. Now, it’s my turn to do something in her memory, as she deserves recognition for being such a bad ass!

Please support my marathon run to honor my mum and raise awareness for cancer. Every contribution helps in the fight against this awful disease. Thank you!

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. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.