LONDONERS are being urged to unite with some of the brightest stars from TV, radio and comedy to Stand Up To Cancer this October.
A stellar line-up of celebrities, including Londoners Robert Rinder, from Southgate, Nick Grimshaw from Stoke Newington, Ade Adepitan from Plaistow, Charlene White from Greenwich, Gizzi Erskine from Wandsworth, as well as Adam Hills and Joel Dommett, have joined forces to launch the joint fundraising campaign from Cancer Research UK and Channel 4.
In a moving film, they can be seen speaking candidly about the impact cancer has had on their lives, revealing personal stories of close friends and family that have been affected.
Spurred on by their experiences, they are calling on everyone to make a stand against the disease by raising money to accelerate life-saving research. Fundraising ideas include getting sponsored to stand up all day, or for as long as people can, on Friday October 15. Or supporters can choose how and when they take on the standing up challenge.
In London around 34,100 people are diagnosed with cancer every year.* Stand Up To Cancer helps to take breakthroughs from the lab and transform them into new treatments that could make a real difference to people with cancer in the capital and across the UK.
On his support for the campaign, TV and radio presenter Nick Grimshaw, whose father died of bladder cancer in 2016, said: “I’m standing up to cancer because it’s something that’s very close to me and to my family. Losing my dad was incredibly painful and I want to be part of the fight to beat this disease. Researchers are leading the way, constantly developing new ways to beat cancer, but they can’t do this vital work without our support. By standing up together, we can all make a real difference in this fight.”
Charlene White, TV presenter and Loose Women panellist, said: “I lost my mum in my early twenties from bowel cancer. I remember the moment she told me she had cancer when we were stood in our kitchen, making Sunday dinner. Soon, my new normal became doing homework on her hospital bed with my brother and sister. Despite it all, mum tried her best to push through the pain and be the best mum to us that she could possibly be. I’m standing up to cancer because I don’t want any other young family to go through what we went through.”
Criminal barrister and TV personality, Robert Rinder, underlined the need for increased funding so that the “brightest and best minds” can work together to beat cancer, while comedian and presenter, Joel Dommett, said that he wants to “help change the odds for people diagnosed with cancer so that more people will survive in the future.”
Adam Hills, presenter of Channel 4’s The Last Leg, said: “I’m standing up to cancer for my dad who dealt with cancer for so much of his life – first stomach cancer, then leukaemia. I’m standing up for him and for all the people going through cancer who share their stories with bravery, with humility, with courage. Scientists are making huge strides in this battle and by raising crucial funds we can all fight against cancer.”
Stand Up To Cancer, now in its ninth year in the UK, has raised more than £84 million, funding 59 clinical trials and projects involving over 19,000 cancer patients across the country.
Lynn Daly, Cancer Research UK spokesperson for London, said: “All of the celebrities involved in the campaign have seen the devastating impact that cancer can have on loved ones and we’re grateful to them for sharing their personal experiences to help inspire others.
“1 in 2 of us will get cancer in our lifetime,** but all of us can play a part in helping to beat it. That’s why we’re asking everyone to Stand Up To Cancer, by standing up on Friday October 15. It’s as simple as that. Whether people stand for the whole day or a few hours – on one leg, two legs, on their head, with a walking stick or do a wheelie every half an hour – whatever the challenge, all money raised in sponsorship will help to speed up progress in vital research. If we all stand together, we can save lives.”
The Stand Up To Cancer campaign will continue throughout September and October and culminate in an awe-inspiring night of TV on Channel 4.
Research projects funded by Stand Up To Cancer include the development of new treatments that use viruses to fight cancer, clinical trials testing potentially more effective ways to deliver radiotherapy and improved surgical techniques for bowel cancer.
Sign up to stand up for the day on October 15 and get a free fundraising kit at su2c.org.uk/standing-up.
