A young boy and his mum have taken a step towards a brain tumour cure by completing a sponsored walk.

Alfie Hooper, eight, from Littlehampton, took part in one of several walks organised by the Brain Tumour Research charity, to help fund research into the disease. He is taking on a number of fundraising walks this year and was joined by his proud mum Natasha-Leigh Stewart at the event.

With a spring in their step, Alfie and Natasha joined 100 amblers taking on Portsmouth’s inaugural Walk of Hope, which began at the Still and West pub. The pair walked from the cobbled streets of Old Portsmouth before heading out towards Southsea Common on Saturday 29th September.

Natasha, 30, a tattoo studio owner, from Littlehampton, said: “I am super proud of Alfie. His fundraising efforts and willingness to support charities truly tugs on my heartstrings. He is a wonderful, generous, loving boy and had a fantastic time at the walk. I hope he inspires others to fundraise for this vital cause and I’m sure he’ll be running marathons in years to come.”

Tim Green, Senior Community Fundraising Manager at Brain Tumour Research, said: “We are very grateful to Alfie and Natasha for supporting us at the Walk of Hope. Brain tumours kill more children and adults under the age of 40 than any other cancer, yet historically just 1% of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to this devastating disease.”

To donate to Brain Tumour Research via Alfie’s JustGiving page visit https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/braintumorresearchwalk

For further information, please contact:
Annie Slinn at the Brain Tumour Research charity 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 dedicated to raising funds for continuous and sustainable scientific research into brain tumours, and we are a leading voice calling for greater support and action for research into what scientists are calling the last battleground against cancer.

We are building a network of experts in sustainable research at dedicated Centres of Excellence whilst influencing the Government and larger cancer charities to invest more nationally.

We welcome recent funding announcements for research into brain tumours from the UK Government and Cancer Research UK – £65 million pledged over the next five years. However, this potential funding of £13 million a year comes with a catch – money will only be granted to quality research proposals and, due to the historic lack of investment, there may not be enough of these applications that qualify for grants from this pot.

We want research funding parity with breast cancer and leukaemia. We are calling for a £30-35 million investment every year for research into brain tumours in order to fund the basic research groundwork needed to accelerate the translation from laboratory discoveries into clinical trials and fast-track new therapies for this devastating disease.

The Brain Tumour Research charity is a powerful campaigning organisation and represents the voice of the brain tumour community across the UK. We helped establish and provide the ongoing Secretariat for the All Party Parliamentary Group for Brain Tumours (APPGBT). We are supporting the crucial APPGBT 2018 Inquiry into the economic and social impacts of brain tumours and will publish their report in the autumn. We are also a key influencer in the development strategy for the Tessa Jowell Brain Cancer Mission. 

Key statistics on brain tumours:

• Brain tumours are indiscriminate; they can affect anyone at any age
• Brain tumours kill more children and adults under the age of 40 than any other cancer
• Just 1% of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to brain tumours
• In the UK, 16,000 people each year are diagnosed with a brain tumour
• Brain tumours kill more children than leukaemia
• Brain tumours kill more men under 45 than prostate cancer
• Brain tumours kill more women under 35 than breast cancer
• Less than 20% of those diagnosed with a brain tumour survive beyond five years compared with an average of 50% across all cancers

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