A young mum is challenging herself to take on a marathon to honour her dad lost last year to secondary brain cancer.  

Lauren Jasiewicz, 26, from Windsor, is in training to complete the Virgin Money London Marathon for the Brain Tumour Research charity, which included completing the Windsor Winter Half Marathon last Sunday (20 January).  With every step of the way, she will be thinking of her dad Philip Jasiewicz, known to everybody as Steff, who lived in Maidenhead. Steff was originally diagnosed with and treated for lung cancer in February 2017.

On 28 June 2018, Steff went to the GP because he had suddenly become completely deaf. He underwent tests which revealed the had cancer returned and was now widespread in his brain. The family were given the shocking news just days later that his survival prognosis was six weeks.

Steff passed away in hospital on 9 July 2018 with his former partner Karen Mulcahey, daughters Lauren and Stacey Jasiewicz-Agatowska, 28, and son Nathan, 17, by his side. He was 64.

Lauren, a veterinary nurse at Summerleaze Veterinary Hospital, said: “I completed the Race to the Tower, a double marathon in one day along part of the Cotswold Way, in June last year and Dad was my inspiration then. I felt I had given my all by mile 44, but I phoned Dad and he encouraged me to finish: ‘Only eight miles to go, you can’t stop now!’ he said.

“Dad was an engineer working for GSK until taking early retirement and was passionate about football. He supported Reading FC and Maidenhead United as well as playing bowls with all his friends at Desborough Bowling Club. But he was a real family man and was always there for me and my daughter Bella, now six. She adored her Grandpops and loved spending time with him hunting for bugs and walking in the countryside, spotting birds and other wildlife.

“I miss Dad every day and am very sad he didn’t achieve his goal to live to see the World Cup Final, or Nathan’s 18^th birthday on 21 January, or the birth of his second grandchild later this month.

“It is shocking how little funding research into brain tumours receives, yet the disease kills more children and adults under the age of 40 than any other cancer. I hope lots of people donate and help me reach my target of £3,000.”

Historically, just 1% of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to this devastating disease, and Brain Tumour Research is proud to be changing this.

Paula Rastrick, community fundraising manager for Brain Tumour Research in the Central region, said: “We are extremely grateful to Lauren. It’s great to see that her fundraising has got off to an amazing start and we thank her for all she is doing to raise awareness.”

Brain Tumour Research funds sustainable research at dedicated Research Centres of Excellence in the UK. It also campaigns for the Government and the larger cancer charities to invest more in research into brain tumours in order to speed up new treatments for patients and, ultimately, to find a cure. The charity is calling for an annual spend of £35m in order to improve survival rates and patient outcomes in line with other cancers such as breast cancer and leukaemia.

To donate to Brain Tumour Research via Lauren’s JustGiving page go to www.justgiving.com/fundraising/lauren-jasiewicz4

The London Marathon takes place on Sunday 28 April 2019. If you’ve been inspired by Lauren and want to run alongside her, contact Sarah@braintumourresearch.org

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 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) which published its report Brain Tumours A cost too much to bear? in 2018. Led by the charity, the report examines the economic and social impacts of a brain tumour diagnosis. We are also a key player 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
• Historically, 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.