Children’s Cancer and Leukaemia Group (CCLG) hosted its inaugural Research Discovery Day last week (20 September), to offer valuable insight into the research it funds to families and supporters.
Among the attendees at Leicester Museum & Art Gallery were parents of children diagnosed with cancer, survivors and CCLG fundraisers, who were able to hear experts from Birmingham Children’s Hospital, the University of Nottingham and the University of Oxford talk about how they’re working to improve the future for children with cancer.
Before that, they heard from Emma Jones, whose daughter Ruby passed away from blood cancer in 2020. Emma spoke about Ruby’s wish to donate her life savings to research to help other young cancer patients, and why she carries on her daughter’s legacy by raising money for research through Ruby’s Live Kindly Live Loudly Fund, a Special Named Fund at CCLG.
Emma said:
It was lovely to have the opportunity to share Ruby’s story. We’re passionate about supporting research in her memory and I enjoyed having the opportunity to tell people why it’s so important to us. It was fantastic to meet other parents and hear their experiences. I particularly enjoyed meeting Martin and Liz Vernon, who set up the first CCLG Special Named Fund in their son David’s memory 17 years ago. It was so inspiring to see that they are still engaged in fundraising for cancer research. I firmly want to still be honouring Ruby’s memory in this way in 15 or more years’ time.
Dr Sarah Evans, CCLG Research Manager, said:
We organised this day to give back to our amazing families and supporters. We’re delighted that five childhood cancer experts could join us to really show how hard professionals work to make a brighter future for children with cancer. The families I talked to today spoke of how lovely it was to meet other families, share their experiences, and hear about the expert research that is ongoing. It was a fantastic day, and there was a real sense of community. I think the CCLG team and our childhood cancer experts finished the day feeling even more inspired by the stories we’ve heard today.
Recordings of the talks will soon be available on CCLG’s YouTube channel, and you can sign up to hear more about CCLG research events and webinars.