A man from Bow, who lost his closest friend to a brain tumour, has completed the London Marathon to raise funds to help scientists find a cure for the disease.

Daniel Walker, 32, lives close to where his friend Darel Bryan used to live beside Victoria Park and where Darel’s partner, Natalie Overs, still lives. Darel was a fit and healthy 33-year-old when he was diagnosed with several brain tumours. Just over a year later, Darel, passed away. Natalie has set up a fundraising group, known as the Darel Bryan Foundation, under the umbrella of national charity Brain Tumour Research to help find more effective treatments and ultimately a cure.

Now, just over two years after losing Darel to brain cancer, Dan has raised more than £2,000 for the pioneering charity Brain Tumour Research which funds a network of Centres of Excellence where scientists are focused on improving outcomes for patients and, ultimately, finding a cure.

Dan said: “It was a big shock when Darel was diagnosed with brain cancer – not only were he and I best friends, but my girlfriend Kiri Ward and Natalie were best friends too. It was heart-breaking for us all, realising that there were so few treatment options available to Darel. For obvious reasons, raising funds for research into brain tumours is very close to my heart and, as well as raising money, I hope my efforts will also help to raise awareness of the shocking statistics around this disease.”

Dan was among 40,000 runners taking part in the event which was started by The Queen from the grounds of Windsor Castle and relayed to big screens at the start line in Blackheath. It was the 38^th London Marathon to take place since the first on 29^th March 1981.

Michael Thelwall, Head of Community Fundraising for Brain Tumour Research, said: “Dan’s determination and commitment are fantastic and I hope he will provide inspiration to others whose lives have been affected by a brain tumour.

“Brain tumours kill more children and adults under the age of 40 than any other cancer – and more men under 45 than prostate cancer – yet just 1% of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to this devastating disease.

“For too long, brain tumours have been a neglected cancer. Experiences like Darel’s remind us all that we cannot allow this desperate situation to continue. We are extremely grateful to Dan and offer our congratulations to everyone who took part in this year’s event to raise money for charity.”

Make a donation to Brain Tumour Research via Dan’s JustGiving page

For further information, please contact:
Liz Fussey at Brain Tumour Research on 07811 068357 or liz@braintumourresearch.org

Notes to Editors

Brain Tumour Research is the only national charity in the UK focused on funding sustainable research to find a cure for brain tumours. We have established a game-changing network of world-class Research Centres of Excellence in the UK. Embracing passionate member charities nationwide, over £6 million was raised towards research and support during 2017.

We are campaigning to see the national spend on research into brain tumours increased to £30 - £35 million a year, in line with breast cancer and leukaemia. The unprecedented success of our 2015 petition led to the 2016 Westminster Hall debate and Brain Tumour Research taking a leading role in the Government’s Task and Finish Working Group convened to tackle the historic underfunding for research with the report published in February 2018.

Key statistics on brain tumours:

• Brain tumours kill more children and adults under the age of 40 than any other cancer
• They kill more children than leukaemia
• They kill more men under 45 than prostate cancer
• They kill more women under 35 than breast cancer
• Just 1% of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to this devastating disease
• In the UK 16,000 people each year are diagnosed with a brain tumour
• Less than 20% of those diagnosed with a brain tumour survive beyond five years compared with an average of 50% across all cancers
• Incidences of, and deaths from, brain tumours are increasing.

Please quote Brain Tumour Research as the source when using this information. Additional facts and statistics are available from our website including our latest Report on National Research Funding. We can also provide case-studies and research expertise for media.