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The London Marathon 2022 raised more than £58m for charity, and for the 2023 London Marathon, St George’s, Epsom and St Helier are set to have a slice of the pie thanks to runners like Ricky, Joanna and Claire who are running and raising funds for the hospital group this weekend.

All three are running the infamous 26.2 miles to raise funds for healthcare services across St George’s, Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals, either as a thank you for the excellent care they have received or as a contribution to improving the patient care and services they provide.

Ricky Chapman is raising funds for St George’s Hospital Charity, specifically for the ENT (Ear Nose and Throat) team who saved his father’s life. Dad Roger Chapman was diagnosed with a stage 4 tumour on the left side of his neck in January 2022.

The tumour ran through a main nerve, which caused complications including not being able to close one eye, having teeth removed and losing feeling and movement down one side of his face.

In a 20-hour operation in February 2022, St George’s ENT surgeon Mr Offo successfully removed the cancerous tumour, followed by a five-hour operation by St George’s plastics surgeon Mr Vesely to repair his eye.

Ricky said: “The care my dad received by the heroic doctors was outstanding, from the very beginning all the way to the anticipated news of the all-clear in May 2022. Not once did my dad feel like just another patient. He felt cared for, respected and attended to.

“By taking on this huge and difficult challenge, I would like to raise as much as possible, which will go fully to the ENT unit at St George’s Hospital. As a big thank you to Mr Offo and Mr Vesley and their amazing teams.”

Ricky has smashed his original target of raising £2,000 by raising an incredible £2,840 for St George’s Hospital Charity.

Ricky said: “Thanks to St George’s, my dad was able to attend my wedding last year and one day will be able to meet his future grandchildren. For this I will always be grateful.”

It’s not just patients or their relatives running the marathon, though, as Joanna Thompson, Advanced Orthoptist at Epsom and St Helier Hospitals, is aiming to raise £1,000 to upgrade bedside vision tests within the stroke ward to support the ongoing rehabilitation of patients recovering after having a stroke.

Joanna only set her fundraising page up last week and has already received nearly £800 in donations.

Joanna said: “I’ve already been blown away by everyone’s kindness and generosity. It’s incredible to have raised so much in such a short amount of time, and I’d like to thank everyone who has donated so far.”

The support goes further than these donations, as on the day family and friends will be there to cheer Joanna on, alongside the amazing crowds of people that London Marathon is renowned for.

But blink and you’ll miss her – as speedy Joanna is hoping to go sub-3.30, having run 3 hours 41 minutes in her first marathon in Lisbon in 2021.

“The one lesson I learnt from the previous marathon is to take longer with my training, so this time I’ve been training for five to six months. I’ve also made my long runs easier and more relaxed, and mixed things up with some other sessions like speed work,” she said.

“I feel nervous, but I know I will be fine, and I’m really excited for the atmosphere. When that start gun goes off, and you’re in a river of other runners, you just switch mentality.”

 

Ellen Walsh, Paediatric Nurse at Queen's Mary's Hospital, was lucky enough to secure a spot to run the London marathon with her son Aodhan, and they saw this as an opportunity  to settle the debate as to who is the quicker runner! With some deliberation, a joint place was secured for the mother and son dou to both run to support The Royal Marsden Charity. They were both over the moon as the charity holds a close place to their hearts.

In 2013, Ellen was diagnosed with breast cancer and had to go through a challenging course of treatment, some of which was undergone at the Royal Marsden. With the help of the research that the charity carry out and the amazing staff and facilities at the hospital, Ellen was successfully treated and has now been cancer free for 9 years.

Unfortunately Caroline, Ellen's sister was also diagnosed with breast cancer in the summer of 2022. She is currently doing a stellar job of persevering through the tough chemotherapy treatment, all with the amazing help of the Royal Marsden as well as family and friends.

"In the space of 9 years, the advances in cancer treatment have been incredible, witnessed first hand by both of us. With this, we have set a target of £2000. Any donations are massively appreciated - little or large"

The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity raises money solely to support The Royal Marsden, a world-leading cancer centre. They ensure nurses, doctors and research teams can provide the very best care and develop life-saving treatments, which are used across the UK and around the world.From funding state-of-the-art equipment and groundbreaking research, to creating the very best patient environments, they will never stop looking for ways to improve the lives of people affected by cancer.

Having saw teamtalk about the London Marathon, Steven, who works in Epsom's Medical Records Team, decided to run the Virtual London Marathon  for the National Autistic Society, because his son has been diagnosed as autistic. 

"My son was diagnosed with Autism when he was younger so I wanted to do do my bit to help others to lead better and improved lives. Having ran in the Virtual London Marathon in 2020 for the National Autistic Society, it has been an surreal experience, I just wanted to relish experiencing once again it one more time by running the the Virtual London Marathon in April 2023"

Finally, Claire Moore, who works at St George’s Hospital as a staff nurse on the Oncology Day Unit, is running to support St George’s Hospital Charity – and she’s already surpassed her £2,000 target, having raised £2,095 so far.

Claire said: “I decided to run the London Marathon for St George’s Hospital Charity, as I have seen the great work they provide to patients all over south west London.

“Running has always been something my family and I are passionate about and it’s a pleasure to run on behalf of the hospital”.

 

Sponsor Ricky here, Joanna here, Claire here, Ellen here and Steven here