Walsall mother joins Race for Life after cancer treatment
A social worker who was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin Lymphoma after finding a lump in her chest is inspiring people to join a Very 2020 version of Race for Life this month.
Anne Marie Lennon, from Walsall, was due to be guest of honour at Birmingham’s Race for Life in May with friends and family taking part in her honour.
That was until Covid-19 forced Cancer Research UK to cancel all 400 Race events around the country.
The charity is expecting a staggering £160 million drop in income in the year ahead with a £44 million cut to life-saving research funding already.
Not to be beaten, Anne Marie and her son Carl Lennon are calling on people to join them for a Very 2020 Race for Life on September 26.
The event will see people across the UK join forces for a live Facebook broadcast before completing their own Race for Life 5K in their nearest green space.
Carl, from Kings Norton, was one of the first men to take part in Race for Life Birmingham last year when Anne Marie had just finished her first session of chemotherapy.
“During chemotherapy I felt like I didn’t exist anymore,” said Anne Marie, aged 58. “I lost my hair and eyebrows and I looked so unrecognisable that my four-year-old granddaughter didn’t want to come and see me. I was putting on weight and I just didn’t recognise myself.
“I decided to do Race for Life as soon as I was diagnosed but I was too poorly so it was really emotional watching Carl and my friends do it for me.
“I still struggle to walk but I will be tuning into the Facebook broadcast and supporting everyone taking part.”
Anne Marie was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin Lymphoma in April 2019.
“I thought nothing of it at first,” said Anne Marie. “They said it was most likely a sarcoma so I just thought they would cut it out and that would be that. It wasn’t until I’d had lots more tests that they told me it was stage four non-Hodgkin Lymphoma.
“I was in shock at first and I couldn’t really process it. I was told it was treatable and that there was a 70 per cent survival rate but all I could think about was ‘who are the 30 per cent and why?’”
Anne Marie underwent four months of chemotherapy and steroid treatment before returning to work as a child protection conference chair for Walsall Borough Council.
“A year ago, when I was going through treatment, I had some really dark days,” recalled Anne Marie. “I’ve been told I’ll have to live with low grade lymphoma for the rest of my life and there’s always a fear that the cancer could come back. But you just have to take each day as it comes and get on with it.
“That’s why I want to reach out to people going through cancer and show that, while we may all still be apart, we can unite with a common goal to fund life-saving research.”
A live broadcast on the Cancer Research UK Race for Life Facebook page at 9.30am on Saturday September 26, will include an energiser from a fitness expert as well as inspirational messages of support from people who have been through cancer. Participants are then free to set off on their own Race for Life. Organisers are also inviting participants to share photos and videos on social media using the hashtag, #Very2020RaceForLife.
Paula Young, spokesperson for Cancer Research UK in the West Midlands, said: “Cancer is still happening right now and we won’t let 2020 stop us.
“Vital cancer research has been delayed this year. Even though we have to Race for Life differently in 2020, nothing’s going to stop us running, walking or jogging to raise money and help beat cancer. Whatever the hurdle, we’ll keep going and we’d urge as many people as possible to join us for a Very 2020 Race for Life on September 26.
“Whether people are taking part in Race for Life this September in their local park or even in their back garden, they’ll be united by a determination to beat cancer together. This is going to be a very 2020 Race for Life but together we will still beat cancer.”
To sign up, visit www.raceforlife.org or call 0300 123 0770. Join in and share with #Very2020RaceForLife
