Fun, fundraising and thriving: 2020 really was a year of Hope!

Eazi Business • January 29, 2021

Here at Hope Against Cancer, we have a very clear ambition – to prolong the lives of those living with Cancer in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.

2020 was, without question, one of the most challenging years for many organisations but, despite this, we were still able to boast some amazing achievements and we are looking forward to continuing this success in 2021.

Hope Cancer Trials Centre at the Leicester Royal Infirmary

Raising close to £1.5 million allowed an impressive transformation and expansion of the recently renamed Hope Cancer Trials Centre at the Leicester Royal Infirmary, allowing the staff and specialists there to double their previous treatment capacity.

The facility has been able to double its capacity thanks to the fundraising of Hope supporters and Business Club members, meaning more cancer trials can take place in Leicester and even more patients can benefit from access to potential treatments not currently available on the NHS.

With the expansion complete there is more clinical space, including beds for overnight stays, so the Centre can offer more patients the opportunity to participate in trials as a treatment option, increase our portfolio of trials, and provide a more streamlined service for both patients and staff.

The Hope Trials Centre has earned an international reputation for recruiting patients to cancer studies and is fast becoming the ‘go-to’ site for the pharmaceutical companies who want to test some of the most advanced treatments in the world.

Throughout 2020 the pandemic presented us with some huge fundraising challenges, but we were determined not to stop funding our research. The entire team ploughed on with confidence and never lost sight of our ambitions and goals. Our supporters and volunteers have been outstanding, and I’m proud and honoured to be part of this community. Charities like Hope need support more than ever before so it’s vital that we don’t stop our efforts now

Hope’s community of supporters certainly had many fabulously successful and innovative fundraising ideas at a time when charities generally were feeling the strain. During the festive period alone, there were Santa fun runs, YouTube Christmas concerts, winter garden events – and even the launch of a Christmas charity single with a bit of help from Leicester’s own ‘Return of the Mac’ singer, Mark Morrison!

The Hope Through Business Club saw a plethora of local businesses organising and hosting events including quiz nights, curry nights, suits & vinyl nights, ‘jolly nights in’ at Steamin’ Billy pubs across the region, dress down days, marathon runs… an almost inexhaustible list of ways to ensure that we are seeing funds raised to continue research into new treatments to extend lives.

Whilst we can reflect proudly on our achievements in 2020, it’s now very much full steam ahead again. We already have a mix of popular and unique events in the calendar for 2021. There’s a Golf Day at Luffenham Heath, a Wild Atlantic cycle tour to name a few, with many other events in the pipeline – COVID permitting.

For more information on The Hope Cancer Trials Centre or any of the upcoming events which we have planned in 2021 visit our events page

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We recently met Ian for a coffee at the RVS café at the Leicester Royal Infirmary, his wife Ellena is coming to the end of a trial at the Hope Cancer Trials Centre and he is in remission having received treatment for prostate cancer at the Osborne Building. Ian generously donates to HOPE and wanted to share their story with us .
By John Nellis September 6, 2024
On 1 st September thousands of runners took part in the London Big Half Marathon. Among the crowds were 18 incredible people taking part to raise money for Hope Against Cancer. The 13.1 mile course took the runners on a journey across London starting at Tower Bridge and ending at the iconic Cutty Sark in Greenwich. The event began at 8.25am with the start of the elite wheelchair race. This was closely followed by the elite runners and then the first mass wave. Dame Kelly Holmes led the elite runners off the start line. HOPE’s own Corporate and Community Partnerships Manager, Tim Gorman-Powell, ran in elite group A… Tim said, “I’m not sure how or why I found myself in that group but I enjoyed running alongside the best of the best for the short time I did so!” The sun was shining and spirits were high. The atmosphere was amazing as thousands of friends and family roared on the 10,000+ runners through the streets of London. The finish line was packed with spectators and reverberated to the loud music playing over the PA system. Tim concludes that it was “an incredible event from start to finish, with a great atmosphere and a beautiful route through the capital.” The HOPE runners not only raised thousands for cancer research and trials support but they also had a wonderful day. Here is some of their feedback: "It was a pleasure to run the Big Half in aid of Hope Against Cancer with a wonderful amount of money raised so far!" "I can't put it into words, it was so hot and hard but I LOVED IT!! Thank you so much for this amazing experience" "Great day running in London for Hope Against Cancer" "Enjoyable day in the capital with a great group of people all running for Hope Against Cancer. I even set a new half marathon PB!!!" We would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to everyone that made the trip to support Hope Against Cancer and life changing cancer research and clinical trials here in Leicestershire and Rutland.
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A man wearing glasses and a blue shirt is smiling for the camera.
By John Nellis May 15, 2024
I believe that my experience with CLL (Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia) was fairly typical. It all began with an insurance policy blood test which showed a slightly raised white blood cell count that I needed to discuss with my GP. A referral to Leicester Royal Infirmary led to a diagnosis of CLL in July 2019. ‘A classic case’ the consultant said. I was 73 and it was a diagnosis by chance rather than by symptoms. The CLL was not that advanced and the doctors told me that there was no advantage to early treatment for this particular form of cancer. I was given reams of literature about the disease, which included plenty of optimistic comments about the success rates of the latest treatment, and I was put on Watch and Wait status. I soon learned that this is more realistically called Watch and Worry… I was also likely to be more prone to infection, and with COVID just around the corner, I became socially ultra cautious. I watched and I waited for three years, with blood tests every three months and ongoing discussions with my excellent consultant Dr Allchin. Dr Allchin was very clear about how the disease was progressing, realistic, but positive nevertheless. It was particularly helpful that my wife was able to attend all the sessions and that I could record them on my phone. In Autumn 2022 the tests revealed that it was time to start my treatment and I was given all the information I needed to make my own decision. I had two options. For me it was either take tablets for the rest of my life or a one-year treatment that would involve hospital visits. I chose the one year 'targeted therapy’ option. This is one of the new cancer treatments that research by centres such as the Hope Cancer Trials Centre has made possible. To begin I was given monthly infusions at the Osborne Day Centre at the Leicester Royal Infirmary. The nurses were superb, and the atmosphere was positive. This lasted approximately 6 months and while I was very tired for much of the time, there were not too many side effects. The treatment does affect your immune system so, in normal circumstances I would have needed to minimise social mixing, but the impact of COVID was having a similar effect anyway. The other part of my treatment was tablet-based which built to a crescendo of four large pills every day for ten months. This overlapped with the infusions, so that it was all completed within the same year. I received regular support from my consultant, from my CLL nurses (Sarah and Tina), from the Osborne Clinic nurses, and from the 24/7 Haematology helpline, and all this at an incredibly difficult time for every part of the NHS. My targeted therapy, which both enabled my immune system to recognise and fight the cancer, and attacked the disease itself, is a massive improvement on the earlier invasive treatments. To me, this clearly shows the progress made in cancer therapy thanks to research by organisations like Hope against Cancer. It was obvious how expensive all this is, especially as improvements are made in the effectiveness of treatment. Fundraising is a vital element in making these improvements possible. After I was told I was in remission I wanted to show my gratitude for the support I received at the LRI and donated to Hope Against Cancer to help support the incredible work of the Hope Cancer Trials Centre.
By John Nellis May 15, 2024
On 4th November, Leicester Racecourse held its newly revamped fireworks festival with live music, magic, a funfair and two impressive firework displays (one for children and a later one for adults). As the racecourse’s 2023 charity of the year Hope was provided with hospitality space in the boxes and Club room for which we sold tickets. It was a great space where our guests were then able to base themselves for the event. There was food provided by the racecourse and shelter from the intermittent rain both inside and from the covered balcony beyond. The Hope hospitality area had the finest view available that night with the firework display being set up in the track U-bend directly in front of us. Opening at 4, heavy clouds seemed to give way to patches of light blue and spots of red sky on one side, while remaining dark on the other. This was the way the weather went throughout the night, sometimes rain, sometimes not. Fortunately for all, when it did rain it didn’t last too long and it didn’t seem to dull the crowd's enthusiasm for the myriad of entertainment laid on by the racecourse. Looking out from the grandstand on the falling night it was anything but dark. In front was a well-lit stage for the live acts, and, later on, Fun House superstar, and DJ, Pat Sharp! Over to the right was the bright funfair with dodge-ums, and many a spiraling, scream inducing ride. And everywhere else there were children, and probably more than a few adults, swinging multi-coloured glowing sticks and swords. Behind the stand there were carts of food which filled the air with the beautiful smells of spices, burgers, fried onions, salt, vinegar and chips. Alongside these stood stalls selling jewellery, Christmas cards, sweets and much more. Some amazing Hope volunteers also ran a stall selling items alongside a very popular tombola of generously donated items. Other intrepid volunteers braved the weather and roamed the site in hi-vis Hope tops carrying collection buckets. And then there was the children’s area located near the winner's circle. A riot of laughter tumbled from various bouncy castles, the face painting area, and the magic show. At 7.30, Hope staff members, Barbara and Tim, took to the stage to introduce us to the crowd, to thank them for their support and to wish everyone a good night. And then the first display began. Purples, oranges, greens, reds, and blues fanned out into the sky and finished to a surge of applause from the captivated crowd. The second display, a few hours later, was even more impressive and provided a fine crescendo to a wonderful, and productive year for Hope Against Cancer as Leicester Racecourse’s charity of the year. The event would not have been possible without the huge efforts of Lucy, who stood by the front gate for many hours ensuring that our guests were identified and knew where to go, Barbara and Tim who were everywhere else helping our guests and volunteers, the incredible volunteers themselves - Matteo, Will, Dorothy, Julie, Charlotte, Lizz and Sally - and the brilliant racecourse team. 
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