Pals’ coast to coast adventure for Cobalt
Six friends will set out on a cycling adventure on 22 June to support local medical charity Cobalt. Over 6 days Giles, Andy, Sam, Ben and Noel will cycle over 230 miles climbing the equivalent of Everest while crossing three national parks. The group’s friend Allen Wallace will be their trusted driver for the journey. They will start out in the Lake District at Ravenglass, crossing the Yorkshire Dales and finishing at Ravenscar after conquering the North York Moors.
Over 75% of the ride will be off road, with a total distance of 230 miles, climbing 27,000 feet. More information on the route can be found on pedalnorth.com.
Giles Granger, owner at Terrascapes, Landscape and groundworks specialists in Stroud said “Cancer or dementia has touched us all at some point or another and we now just want to give something back to raise vital funds for Cobalt. We’re training every week so we’re ready to take on the challenge.”
Andy Wallace whose sister is currently receiving treatment for cancer said “My wife and I both have friends and family members who we have lost or are currently undergoing treatment for these diseases. I thought this challenge was a way for me to show how much I care and hopefully, the money raised will help other families in the future”.
Cobalt are an important centre for cancer research and are currently contributing PET/CT imaging services for 12 different oncology studies, including several national and international projects. These cover areas such as Lymphoma, Oesophageal cancer, Myeloma and Lung cancer.
Many of these projects are involved in studying the effects of current treatments for cancer or establishing the efficacy of new and novel cancer drug treatments. All of which have the potential to make effective contributions in providing measurable differences in the management and treatment of these illnesses which could in turn provide real benefits to patients both in the short and long term.
In addition to other oncology based projects Cobalt fund a specialist nursing post for Teenagers and Young Adults with cancer. Megan Willsher Cobalt’s TYA Nurse, provides specialist support for these patients.
Cobalt are also very active participants in dementia diagnosis and research and organise an annual Dementia conference with worldwide experts in the field. The conference is an opportunity for medical professionals to share best practice and to be updated on developments and the latest research findings. The Charity are also in a joint venture with the 2gether NHS Foundation Trust to develop dementia research. In addition to funding specialist scans utilising state-of-the-art equipment for patients with Young Onset Dementia, they are also funding two dementia research nurses to recruit patients into clinical trials.
Funds raised will help the charity purchase a new MRI scanner for the Cobalt Imaging Centre in Cheltenham. This scanner has all the latest software to ensure we continue to offer the very best high definition specialist images, including neurology and musculoskeletal, for our clinical and research patients now and well into the future offering our patients the best medical imaging for diagnosis.
Kirsty Bradbury, Fundraising Engagement Officer, Cobalt said “What Giles and the team are doing is just fantastic. Challenge events are a great way to raise money for us as well as drawing attention to the work we do”.
To support the guys go to Muddy Funkers
To find out more go to events
To find out more about Cobalt, the work they do go to www.cobalthealth.co.uk.
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