A London-based scientist and a dancer from Kent are among several Brain Tumour Research supporters who will be taking on the mighty Manchester Marathon this Sunday (14th April) to raise money in the quest to find a cure.
Lucy Ahern (above), a PHD student from Hertfordshire, will be running in memory of her school friend, Amani Liaquat, from Luton, who was diagnosed with a glioblastoma (GBM) – a terminal brain tumour with a devastatingly poor prognosis of 12-18 months – on her 22nd birthday in April 2020.
Sadly, despite undergoing NHS standard of care and sourcing life-prolonging treatment from Germany, for which her family, with the help of relatives, friends and strangers, raised more than £100,000 in 24 hours, Amani’s tumour continued to grow. She died in February 2022, aged just 23.
Lucy (above with Amani), 26, who now lives in Hackney, said: “Amani was incredible and I admired her for being so authentic. She was bubbly, wise, had a great sense of humour and was one of my best friends in school.
“As a scientist, I understand how long it takes to carry out research into a disease, how important the work is and how much it costs, which is why I want to do all I can to support Brain Tumour Research, to help others, like Amani, in the future because no one, especially a young person, should have to go through what she did.”
Sydney Dening (below) also understands the pain of losing a loved one to a brain tumour. The 23-year-old dance graduate will be running in memory of her cousin who died of brain cancer less than two weeks before his 16th birthday.
Callum Miller, who lived in California, was diagnosed with primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL), a rare form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma which presented as a tumour in his brain, just before his 11th birthday in December 2017.
As well as undergoing many rounds of chemotherapy and a stem cell transplant, after which he was in remission for a year, Callum took part in a CAR T-cell clinical trial which gave him two further years in remission.
He died in December 2022 following his third recurrence, hours before he was due to start a new treatment.
Sydney (above with Callum as children), from Broadstairs, said: “Callum was funny, caring and selfless. His final act of kindness involved making the decision to donate his tumour tissues to research because he didn’t want other children or families to go through what he did.
“The fact just 1% of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to brain tumours since records began in 2002 makes me determined to help in any way I can and I know that’s what Callum would have wanted too.”
Good luck to all our Manchester Marathon runners. With your help, we can continue to fund the fight to find a cure and stop this disease devastating lives.
To support Lucy’s fundraising, visit www.justgiving.com/page/lucy-ahern-1711891623236
To support Sydney’s fundraising, visit www.justgiving.com/page/syd-dening-1705585677605
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