London Marathon for Lymphoma Action

I know many of you have heard my brother's story and supported me through a testing time for our family, but I kindly ask for any donations. I'm running the London Marathon in 3 weeks' time on Sunday 2nd October 2022 and I have £710 left to raise for this amazing charity... please get me over the line.

Here is the reason I have committed to 3-4 runs every single week for the last six months, the reason I've trained in Egypt, Spain and on the hills of North Yorkshire; this hard training is a drop in the ocean compared to my brother's fight against Lymphoma!

On 12th July, I received some terrifying news that my 40-year-old brother had been rushed into hospital as he couldn't breathe! I sat on a school residential with Year 5 and 6s with the sudden realisation that I was 4 - 5 hours away from my family with no transport to get there quickly. The staff alongside me at that point were absolute rocks (you know who you are!)

Later that day, after an agonising wait, we found out that Sean had fluid on his lungs and a mass in his chest. He was relying on the oxygen.

Even more agonising for the family and Sean was that he couldn't have visitors due to COVID and keeping himself safe. This was hard on the family that just wanted to see him, hug him, give him a reassuring smile and talk to the professionals working with him. It was even harder for Sean, who swallowed this news alone. My brother, more than ever, has shown what fighting strength he has!

On the 14th July, it was confirmed that Sean has Stage 4 Lymphoma - treatable but not curable. For me, I didn't have a clue what this meant? I was scared!

Throughout July, Sean was hospitalised and on and off oxygen; they tried multiple times to get him off of oxygen, but his lungs couldn't cope.

Now we know that Sean has Stage 4 Lymphoma and has received aggressive chemo to reduce the spread. Sean went through 6 cycles of aggressive chemo - this was tough, very tough on Sean's body. Lymphoma is cancer of the blood, and Sean has lumps in his neck, splein, liver and a 13cm mass on his chest on top of his lungs. He now realises he had early symptoms, but these could be missed by anyone - fatigue, loss of weight and a cough. At the time, he tested for COVID and put the weight loss down to starting a practical job. My main message here is to go to the doctor if you are worried about anything!

Sean has survived receiving Beacop - DAC chemo; Sean has found inner strength for this treatment like he didn't know he had. He felt sick, lost his hair, lost muscle strength, couldn't work, struggled to get out of the bath and his 14-year-old son had to help him off the floor multiple times... but Sean just kept fighting! Day in and day out.

Right now, Sean is awaiting another set of big results, which he will receive close to the London Marathon day. We will soon know if Sean will have to face chemo again (something Sean is dreading!), radiotherapy, other treatment or stop treatment completely. I hope with all my might that the cancer has not grown and Sean can have a little break, but talking to Sean this week, he is very realistic and quoted some scary statistics.

This is my time to give back to a group that is helping Sean and many others... Lymphoma Action. This charity's mission is to ensure no-one faces Lymphoma alone!

Since July last year, I have had quite a wake-up call myself. Family is everything and having the time to see my family up north is now more important than ever! I've jumped out of headship and set up my own company. Last weekend, I spent an evening with my brother and his family watching my niece dance in a dance show and I spent a Sunday evening around the dinner table with them and cherished every moment.

What this all quite means for Sean at the moment we still don't know, but we know he has a strong family around him; others may not... please donate to this fantastic charity every little counts and most importantly, support will be given to those struggling to live with Lymphoma x

For more information about their services, please visit www.lymphoma-action.org.uk