A teacher from Streatham is gearing-up for the London Marathon this October, after being inspired by her mum’s life-changing cancer diagnosis.
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Yasmin (left) and her mum Jennifer
Yasmin Chambers (28), who teaches at Glenbrook Primary School in Clapham, was moved to take on the world-famous race as a thank-you to Macmillan Cancer Support, the charity that has been there for her mum Jennifer, after she was diagnosed with stage 4 bowel cancer.
Yasmin explained the impact her mum’s shock cancer diagnosis has had:
“My amazing mum was diagnosed with cancer in November 2020. She is an active, 47-year-old mum-of-three, who had no symptoms but got diagnosed with stage 4 bowel cancer, after thinking she just had anxiety due to lockdown. She also initially received a misdiagnosis, being told that her symptoms were due to the menopause.
“We now know that her cancer went undetected for 5 years and by the time it eventually was found, the diagnosis was stage 4 and the cancer had spread to the liver. She is currently on her last round of chemo and is hoping that they will be able to operate.
Yasmin’s mother, Jennifer Chambers, lives and is being treated in Derbyshire.
Yasmin said of her inspiring mum:
“After her diagnosis, our world changed very fast. I’m her eldest child and have a 20-year-old brother and a 9-year-old sister. Our mum is our inspiration.
“To keep active and her spirits up, Mum decided to start an Instagram blog (@fittobeatcancer) and also began fundraising for Macmillan by running, walking or cycling 5k a week – when her treatment would allow. She initially set a target of £2,000 – she raised it in less than 48 hours! She then re-set the target to £4,000. Another 48 hours later and she reached that goal too. She has now fundraised almost £9,000, which is just incredible.
“Macmillan has supported my mum throughout her chemo and have offered great advice and answered so many of the questions we’ve all had. I have a 9-year-old sister and Macmillan have even supported us on how to help her with our mum’s diagnosis.
“It’s my aim to run a marathon and contribute at least £4,000 to my mum’s amazing total for Macmillan, who have lifted my mum’s spirits and given us all hope when at times it felt like we were just receiving bad news after bad news.
“I can’t say that I’m not looking forward to that finish line…those miles are looking very daunting at the minute! But it will be a good challenge and is a goal I have always wanted to achieve. I also feel really lucky to be taking part; I have friends who’ve been trying to get a place for years, so I feel very privileged to be running while raising money for my mum and Macmillan along the way!”
And to donate to Jennifer Chamber’s page: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/smashingcancerwithjen
To donate to #TeamMacmillan visit londonmarathon.macmillan.org.uk. The funds raised by Team Macmillan runners and supporters will help Macmillan continue to provide vital support and do whatever it takes to be there for everyone, from day one of their cancer diagnosis.
