A BLANDFORD man who lost his wife to cancer last year is aiming to tackle Mount Kilimanjaro to raise thousands of pounds for research into the disease.
Andy Simpson’s wife Petra, 44, died in July 2007 after battling lung cancer and secondary bone cancer.
IT instructor Andy, 37, is due to set off on the eight-day trip to ascend the 19,000ft summit in July.
He said: “My wife was a pure light in every sense of the word and, because of this, I have decided to devote the remainder of my life to help raise funds to find the cure for this dreadful disease.
“For the 18 months she had been fighting this terrible disease, she helped to reinforce my belief in how strong the human spirit is in times of strife.
“During Petra’s illness, I spent a lot of time in search of anything that would help my wife’s condition, but unfortunately without success.
“While doing this research, I found that Cancer Research UK has made huge advances into finding this elusive cure, especially in the field of cell mutation and stopping the cancerous cells from splitting and multiplying, which is at the root of the formation of some cancers.”
He urged people to support his quest to raise cash for Cancer Research UK.
“If the funds aren’t raised, then the cure isn’t going to happen, so everyone’s help is vital to help put a stop to the tragedy and devastation that this disease can do to families, as it did to mine,” he said.
Lin Charlton, area volunteer manager for Cancer Research UK, welcomed Andy’s help to raise funds to improve understanding of the disease and find how to prevent, diagnose and treat different kinds of cancer.
“Cancer Research UK spends £315 million a year on scientific research and we fund over 4,250 research scientists, doctors and nurses throughout the UK,” she said.
To sponsor Andy, visit his fundraising page at justgiving.com/petrasimpson63 or contact Lin on 07887 651158.
