Every day on average, 12 families in the UK will contract childhood cancer. 

It’s the most devastating news a parent can receive; their sole focus is to do everything to ensure their child gets better.

In February 1987, leukaemia claimed the life of 14-year-old Paul O’Gorman. Within weeks of his death, Eddie and Marion started fundraising.

Just nine months later, another devastating blow struck the family when Paul’s sister, Jean, was also killed by cancer. 

In November 1987, just days after Jean’s death, their parents, Eddie and Marion O’Gorman, met Diana, Princess of Wales. Deeply moved by the double tragedy, she personally helped to establish Children with Cancer UK.

Since 1987, Children With Cancer UK has raised over £250 million to support research into the causes and treatment of childhood cancers, and to provide better facilities for caring for children and their families.

The founders, the O’Gorman family, remain at the helm of what is now a team of over 50 people with offices opposite Great Ormond Street Hospital. Here’s more from Children with Cancer UK:

At Children With Cancer UK, we actively raise and invest money for vital specialist research to save the lives of every child with cancer and keep their family together. In doing so, we liberate visionary researchers and accelerate breakthroughs bringing together extraordinary children with extraordinary research that will one day benefit everyone. 

Since 1988 we have funded over 200 childhood cancer research projects and thanks to these research projects, 8 out of 10 patients can now be successfully treated.

We support families whose lives have been turned upside down by helping to fund the building of free patient and family homes near hospitals around the UK. We also support charities by offering financial assistance to families during treatment and delivering unforgettable days out for children and families, thus creating memories that can never be lost.

Our vision is a world where no child dies of cancer. Today, children with cancer ring their End of Treatment Bell to mark a huge milestone in their lives – the end of their cancer treatment.  

We’ve been working to improve survival rates and the quality of survival in young cancer patients. Great progress has been made and together we’ve helped drive childhood cancer survival rates up from 63.7% to a predicted 84% in 2017*.

With the Sammy Jo Brandon Foundation’s continued support, you will be helping us in our fight against the injustice of cancer in children.

“One of the most moving parts of our work is when we meet the parents and families of children who very sadly didn't survive their cancer. To then witness those parents turn their unimaginable grief into a huge positive by becoming outstanding ambassadors and fundraisers for our Charity is truly humbling.
The Sammy Jo Brandon Foundation, led by Kim and Matt, is a shining example of how grief can be turned into a real force for good, and we are so incredibly grateful for the amazing work they do within their community. They not only raise awareness, but also raise vital funds to allow us to continue our life saving research into cures, and kinder treatment for all childhood cancers.
We cannot thank them enough for their wonderful support”
Mark Brider, CEO, Children with Cancer UK

*Survival rates are based on 5 year survival. The 84% figure for 2017 is an estimated figure by the Office of National Statistics, exact figures will be known by 2023.