A man who lost his brother-in-law to a brain tumour will tackle a 100-mile cycle challenge to help fund vital research into the disease.

Alan Norris, a finance manager from Woodford Green, Essex, is preparing to take on the annual Prudential RideLondon following the death of Tony Withey, a builder from Loughton, Essex. Shocked by the lack of funding into brain tumours, Alan is aiming to raise £500 in aid of the Brain Tumour Research charity.

Alan, aged 58, said: “At my age, signing up for a 100-mile cycle is a real challenge. I’m both excited and worried about the ride but I know the pain I’ll go through will be nothing compared to what my brother-in-law and other brain tumour patients have experienced. Tony was full of life and loved by everyone he knew, so he is missed dearly.”

Tony had no symptoms and was fit and well until he suffered a seizure while driving in May 2006. He was diagnosed with an aggressive brain tumour later that year and despite surgery, he died just seven months after his diagnosis in January 2007, aged 60, leaving behind his wife, Jan Withey, who is Alan’s sister.

Alan added: “Having already completed several triathlons, attended golf days and trekked the Himalayas for this worthy cause, being part of the Brain Tumour Research team at the Prudential 100 will be a real privilege.”

Some 25,000 are expected for the RideLondon-Surrey 100-mile sportive which will set off from the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in east London on Sunday 29^th July before heading through the capital and out into the Surrey countryside and returning to the finish on The Mall.

Brain tumours are indiscriminate; they can affect anyone at any age. What’s more, they 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.

Michael Thelwall, Head of Fundraising for the Brain Tumour Research charity, said: “For too long, brain tumours have been a neglected cancer. Tony’s story reminds us all that we cannot allow this desperate situation to continue. We are extremely grateful to all our riders for their support and wish them well.”

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

For further information, please contact:
Annie Slinn at Brain Tumour Research on 01908 867239 or 07591 206545 or annie.slinn@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.