Get behind our life-saving appeal
Launch of the Bury Free Press Beat It appeal for cancer scope Pictured: Claire Webb (Hospital Fund-raiser), Diane Matthews and Kay Trabucchi (Urology Nurse Practitioner)
The Bury Free Press needs your help. This week, we are launching a new appeal to raise enough money for a life-saving piece of equipment, but we can’t do it without you.
Working with West Suffolk Hospital, we are looking to raise £55,000 to pay for a cancer scope which will help detect prostate cancer and save lives.
It’s a daunting figure, but we’ve got a string of fund-raising events lined up and a variety of ways in which you can chip in.
Along the way we’ll be raising awareness of a disease which affects around 1 in 14 men during their lifetime and is on the rise.
Prostate cancer is now recognised as the second leading cause of cancer death in men, killing 10,000 a year - that’s one every hour.
But an early ultrasound scan can mean early diagnosis, and amuch improved chance of survival.
West Suffolk Hospital’s specialists test between 900 and 1,000 patients for the disease every year, but an update in technology is much-needed - and expensive.
That’s where you come in.
During the coming months, we’ll bring you updates on how the campaign is going and how we are getting our hands dirty to get the money raised.
You’ll hear from people whose lives have been affected by prostate cancer, including those who have survived due to pieces of equipment similar to the one we want to pay for.
There will be interviews with the doctors and nurses who treat the condition, and have seen its effects first hand.
Barry Peters, Bury Free Press editor, said: “Anyone who has taken part in Girls’ Night Out, the St Edmund’s Wheel Bike Ride, Race for Life or the myriad other charity events held in our town will know that the people of Bury St Edmunds’ are not shy of putting themselves out for others.
“It’s that spirit we need to tap into to help us reach our goal. We’re inviting you to support us all the way.”
As his contribution to the appeal, Barry has pledged to get fit with the help of Abbeycroft Leisure over the next 11 months. He’ll be paying £2 for every pound he sheds under the watchful eye of personal trainer Helen Bye and he’s on the hunt for sponsors, too. More will follow on this in future weeks - but next week you can win one of four 12-month Lifestyle memberships to Abbeycroft as part of its Active St Eds campaign.
Throughout our campaign you can donate via our Just Giving page, which can be found at www.justgiving.com/BFP-Beat-It
You can also donate by texting Beat59 followed by a space and your donation amount (e.g. Beat59 £5) to 70070.
We’ll also be providing further ways to donate over the coming weeks.
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Weather for Bury St Edmunds
Wednesday 22 May 2013
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: 4 C to 13 C
Wind Speed: 15 mph
Wind direction: North west
Tomorrow
Light showers
Temperature: 5 C to 9 C
Wind Speed: 20 mph
Wind direction: North west
