Graeme on Mount Kilimanjaro June 2004 On a Fund raising trek for SCOPE

Background

Team Graeme came about shortly after Graeme was diagnosed with his brain tumour. The official colour of Team Graeme is orange since this was the colour of the shirts worn by Graeme’s five-a-side football team. Team Graeme included relatives, friends and work colleagues. They all supported Graeme from the initial diagnosis, throughout his treatment and right up until he died.

Objectives

Team Graeme is now raising funds for research into brain tumours in memory of Graeme. In February 2007 we contacted the Samantha Dickson Brain Tumour Trust (SDBTT) to set up an Umbrella fund raising group. The SDBTT is a registered charity (No. 1128354) that was set up in 1997 to raise funds for research into brain tumours and is the largest group funding brain tumour research in the UK. Our fund raising group is one of 62 Umbrella Groups affiliated with the charity. Each group raises money in its own name for the main charity and can specify the areas of research where their funds are allocated.

SDBTT Umbrella Group Meeting

The SDBTT charity is funding a major brain cancer research centre at University College London (UCL). A meeting for all SDBTT Umbrella Groups was held there on Friday January 29th 2010 and Graeme's dad, Keith, went along to see the research facilities, hear about the work and meet members of other Umbrella Groups. Two presentations from researchers funded by SDBTT reported success in different areas and full details will be on the SDBTT web site soon.

The day was both inspirational and emotional. On the entrance to the research laboratory is a list of all the Umbrella Groups supporting this centre. To see the name SDBTT Graeme Turner Fund up there was a proud moment but also a sad one too.

One of the groups at the new centre at UCL is looking at the type of tumour that Graeme had (Grade 4 Gliobastoma Multiform or GBM) and because of this it has been decided that money from our fund raising will be earmarked for this group. The lead researcher of this team is Dr Steve Pollard and we will be keeping up to date with his work and hopefully reporting progress. One thing that we did learn from the day was that every penny raised by the groups is vital and although millions of pounds for the work would be wonderful there is a lot of valuable research that can be carried out with a few thousand. Do have a look at the SDBTT web site for more information of research projects and successes.

For more information about brain tumours, details of SDBTT and all the Umbrella Groups please click here SDBTT

Click on the logo to go the SDBTT Graeme Turner Fund page

Samantha Dickson Brain Tumour Trust

Saddlers House, 100 Reading Road, Yateley, Hampshire, GU46 7RX

Telephone 0845 130 9733; Fax 0845 130 9744

Registered Charity No. 1128354, Company Limited by Guarantee No. 05615995