Five “middle aged and portly blokes” are to cycle 120 miles for charity inspired by their friend’s brain tumour diagnosis.

The group will be pedalling from Manchester to Blackpool – and back - and hope that this, in conjunction with other events, will bring them close to their £10,000 target for the Brain Tumour Research charity.

Next Sunday’s event (8^th July) is dedicated to young dad Neil Taylor who was diagnosed with a grade three astrocytoma in February 2017. Neil, 32, who is a franchise supervisor for McDonalds in Manchester, underwent surgery followed by radiotherapy and a year of chemotherapy treatment. At the time of his diagnosis his wife Alex was expecting a baby and their daughter Annabelle is now ten months old.

Inspired by the strength and courage shown by the young family who live in Middleton, five of his friends will undertake the cycling challenge. Among them is Paul Tierney, aged 44, also from Middleton, who said: “Neil has a very close-knit family and it must be so difficult for them all. Neil and his lovely wife have shown such tremendous courage and strength through all of this and it has been an inspiration to everyone who knows them.

“It has to be said that we are five middle-aged and portly blokes so not necessarily built for road cycling but we are determined to complete the challenge we have set ourselves and to raise a total of £10,000 for research into brain tumours.”

Also riding will be Stephen, 38, and David Mellor, 40, who live in Alkrington, Jason Doherty, 38 from Boardshaw, and Nick Cooke, 45, of High Crompton. Most of the guys have known each other and Neil for at least 20 years.

Andrea Pankiw, community fundraising manager for the Brain Tumour Research charity, said: “We are extremely grateful to all of those who are taking part in this challenging cycle ride. Brain tumours kill more children and adults under the age of 40 than any other cancer yet just 1% of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to this devastating disease.

“Stories like Neil’s remind us that brain tumours are indiscriminate, they can affect anyone at any age and that is why we are working to fund a network of sustainable Research Centres of Excellence where scientists are focused on improving outcomes for patients and, ultimately, finding a cure. We are also challenging the Government and the larger cancer charities to increase funding to bring this disease into line with other cancers such as breast and leukaemia.”

You can make a donation to Brain Tumour Research via Neil’s JustGiving page.

Photo left to right: Nick Cooke, Stephen Mellor, Neil with baby Annabelle and Paul Tierney.

For further information, please contact:
Susan Castle-Smith at Brain Tumour Research on 01908 867206 or 07887 241639 or Susan@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 being published in 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
• Brain tumours are indiscriminate; they can affect anyone at any age
• 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.