Latest news with #leukaemia
BBC News
a day ago
- Health
- BBC News
Toys from Bristol hospital charity 'gave my son a childhood'
A mother has raised nearly £6,000 for a charity that enabled her son to "have a childhood" while being treated for leukaemia. Four-year-old Connor, from Portishead in Somerset, was diagnosed in February. He is currently cancer-free but is still having chemotherapy to prevent it from returning. Last weekend, his mother Lucy Radford took part in a 24-hour relay to raise money for Bristol Children's Hospital charity, the Grand said the organisation had provided her family with endless toys and "distractions", allowing Connor carefree moments of "normality". Connor spent his fourth birthday in hospital having a spinal tap, where a needle is inserted between the bones of the spine to collect fluid for testing. To create a special memory, the Grand Appeal fulfilled his birthday wish by delivering a Jurassic Park Lego set to his bedside."It might seem like a small gesture, but in those moments, it meant everything," said Ms Radford."It's a distraction, not just for the children but for the parents too. "While they're playing, the adults can sit and talk about what's going on and how they're coping." While having chemotherapy, Connor was also able to play with the ward's jukebox, toys, puzzles, games and Ms Radford said Connor's illness was "a lot to take on". "No parent should have to deal with their child being diagnosed with leukaemia, or any other illness," she said. "We just take each day at a time really."More than 60 people took part in the fundraising relay, which was hosted by Portishead Running Club, of which Lucy is a member. The club quickly surpassed its initial target of £2,000, raising £6, money will go towards state-of-the-art equipment, music, play and art therapy, family accommodation, and making the clinical environment more Connor's diagnosis, his mother said she thought the weeks-long stay in hospital would be "really hard". "But so much effort and funding goes into making the hospital feel less like a hospital and more like a place of comfort and care, for both children and families," she said.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Ex-footballer finishes Tour De France challenge
Former Wolves and England footballer Geoff Thomas has completed his seventh Tour De France challenge with the hope of raising £1m for research into leukaemia. Thomas, who lives in Worcestershire, has been part of Tour 21 team which has been following the exact same route as the Tour De France, a week ahead of the professionals racing. He was given just three months to live in 2003 after being diagnosed with leukaemia, but overcame the illness two years later after treatment and a stem cell transplant. He first took part in the challenge for Cure Leukaemia in 2005, when he was six months in remission, and the 2025 race he completed on Sunday is his last, he said. Speaking to BBC Hereford and Worcester after crossing the finish line in Paris, he said the experience had been "magical". "Everyone's been so good on this event. We've bonded as a team," he said. "I think you become like a family and after a few weeks together doing a ridiculously hard challenges every day is a bond that's built for life." "I started this 20 years ago. It was all purely to raise money for Cure Leukaemia and get [professor] Charlie Craddock the funding he needed to fulfil his dream of building a clinical research centre that would fast-track all the wealth of knowledge that's in the science labs to benefit patients. "Over the last 15 years I can say for sure with the infrastructure we've set up, it's working and people are largely being saved on the back of these fantastic guys raising money for a great cause." He said he was not normally an emotional man but seeing his family at the end of the race was tough. "I knew everybody would be here [at the finishing line] and I had a little moment to myself and then when I came here I just wanted to enjoy everyone's enjoyment and see it in their eyes," he added. "I've done it numerous times... but taking on a challenge like that and meeting in Paris is magical." His wife Julie said she was "so proud". "It's just fantastic. It's a huge challenge and I think 90% is your mental state," she said. "I think Geoff being a professional sportsman, I think he just has that drive in him, no matter what's happening to your body, you just get on with it. "I think he doesn't really think about what's going on at the time, he just pushes on for the charity really, for the cause." Thomas, who was appointed an MBE in 2021 for his work raising money for cancer charities, said everyone that took part should be proud of themselves and what they had achieved. "I am proud of them and I'm proud of the charity and that's why I carry on doing this and oddly, even though I was the most unfit I've been taking on this challenge, it's inspired me even more than any other." Follow BBC Wolverhampton & Black Country on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram. More on this story Thomas prepares for seventh charity Tour De France Ex-footballer in fundraising vow after Tour exit Ex-Wolves star finishes Tour de France for charity Geoff Thomas receives MBE for cancer charity work Related internet links The Tour 21
BBC News
2 days ago
- Sport
- BBC News
Ex-Wolves player Geoff Thomas completes Tour De France challenge
Former Wolves and England footballer Geoff Thomas has completed his seventh Tour De France challenge with the hope of raising £1m for research into who lives in Worcestershire, has been part of Tour 21 team which has been following the exact same route as the Tour De France, a week ahead of the professionals was given just three months to live in 2003 after being diagnosed with leukaemia, but overcame the illness two years later after treatment and a stem cell first took part in the challenge for Cure Leukaemia in 2005, when he was six months in remission, and the 2025 race he completed on Sunday is his last, he said. Speaking to BBC Hereford and Worcester after crossing the finish line in Paris, he said the experience had been "magical"."Everyone's been so good on this event. We've bonded as a team," he said."I think you become like a family and after a few weeks together doing a ridiculously hard challenges every day is a bond that's built for life." "I started this 20 years ago. It was all purely to raise money for Cure Leukaemia and get [professor] Charlie Craddock the funding he needed to fulfil his dream of building a clinical research centre that would fast-track all the wealth of knowledge that's in the science labs to benefit patients."Over the last 15 years I can say for sure with the infrastructure we've set up, it's working and people are largely being saved on the back of these fantastic guys raising money for a great cause."He said he was not normally an emotional man but seeing his family at the end of the race was tough."I knew everybody would be here [at the finishing line] and I had a little moment to myself and then when I came here I just wanted to enjoy everyone's enjoyment and see it in their eyes," he added. "I've done it numerous times... but taking on a challenge like that and meeting in Paris is magical."His wife Julie said she was "so proud"."It's just fantastic. It's a huge challenge and I think 90% is your mental state," she said."I think Geoff being a professional sportsman, I think he just has that drive in him, no matter what's happening to your body, you just get on with it."I think he doesn't really think about what's going on at the time, he just pushes on for the charity really, for the cause."Thomas, who was appointed an MBE in 2021 for his work raising money for cancer charities, said everyone that took part should be proud of themselves and what they had achieved."I am proud of them and I'm proud of the charity and that's why I carry on doing this and oddly, even though I was the most unfit I've been taking on this challenge, it's inspired me even more than any other." Follow BBC Wolverhampton & Black Country on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
Straits Times
3 days ago
- Business
- Straits Times
Happy, healthy, home-ready: Sanctuary prepares rescued kitties for adoption
Find out what's new on ST website and app. Ms Eva Helina Irman, operations manager of Little Katpaws, keeping the cats at the animal shelter active. SINGAPORE – Ms Eva Helina Irman runs Little Katpaws, a cat shelter on the second floor of a shophouse in Aliwal Street. The cat sanctuary, about 2,000 sq ft, is designed like a home for felines to roam freely. This is to help the rescued cats 'acclimate to human homes should they get adopted', said Ms Eva, 28, who is the operations manager. Little Katpaws was started by her 48-year-old mother Katrina Shamsudin in 2016. 'It was a small place located at Ming Arcade in Cuscaden Road. We had only 10 cats then,' Ms Eva told The Straits Times. 'I was 13 when I pestered her into fostering some cats. Eventually, it became her pet project,' Ms Eva said of her mother. 'We moved to a much bigger place in North Bridge Road in 2020 and at one point, we even helped rescue 40 cats from a hoarder. We managed to find homes for 25 of them. A few of those cats are still with us,' she added. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore 1 in 3 vapes here laced with etomidate; MOH working with MHA to list it as illegal drug: Ong Ye Kung Singapore HSA extends hotline hours, launches new platform to report vaping offences Singapore Tampines regional centre set to get more homes, offices and public amenities Multimedia How to make the most out of small homes in Singapore World Diplomats dismissed: Inside the overhaul reshaping Trump's foreign policy Life US tech CEO Andy Byron resigns after viral Coldplay 'kiss cam' video Opinion I thought I was a 'chill' parent. Then came P1 registration Singapore 'God and government are the only things beyond our control,' says Group CEO Her mother used to run a boarding place for cats but called it quits after 'some owners stopped paying for the food and board, or simply became uncontactable when it was time for the cats to go home', according to Ms Eva, who previously worked for charities. 'The boarding provided income for the sanctuary. With that gone, we depend on donations from kind people and that makes up 30 per cent of our expenditure. The rest comes from our own pockets,' she said. Cats are allowed to roam the shelter, but those that are sick are confined in glass rooms. ST PHOTO: BRIAN TEO The largest portion of the expenses goes to veterinary care and food. On some months, the donations dipped so low that almost 90 per cent of the costs came out of their own pockets. Today, Little Katpaws houses a total of 30 cats. Ms Eva has capped the number at 40 to prevent overcrowding. She has also installed created rooms with glass doors to separate cats infected with feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) or feline leukaemia virus (FeLV) so that the healthy ones are protected. FIV attacks a cat's immune system, leaving it vulnerable to infections. FeLV is a form of leukaemia that causes a variety of diseases as it invades cells in the immune system and blood-forming tissues. Segregating the sick kitties 'does not mean these cats do not get sun and exercise', Ms Eva said. Two of the 30 cats at the sanctuary. Operations manager Eva Helina Irman said many of the residents are ready for adoption. ST PHOTO: BRIAN TEO They are let out at different times of the day to roam some of the other rooms, which would be thoroughly cleaned after use. 'Cat shelters need to prioritise the well-being of their feline residents. Therefore, they need to provide adequate space, safe and clean environments, and proper healthcare,' she added. Currently, there are no common set of national guidelines to help shelters adopt best practices across the board. Ms Eva relies on what she has learnt online and through experiences to ensure her feline residents are 'happy, healthy and ready to be adopted'. 'Only when the new regulations come out will we see how we can tweak our current practices to ensure we toe the line,' she said.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Energy Drinks Seen Fuelling Cancer, But There's a Strange Catch
Energy drinks are big business. Marketed as quick fixes for fatigue and performance dips, energy drinks are especially popular among young people, athletes, sports enthusiasts, and so-called "weekend warriors" – people who pack their workouts into the weekend instead of exercising regularly. Gamers are now a major target too. But as the market grows, so do concerns about what's actually in these drinks – and what these ingredients might be doing to our bodies. Many energy drinks contain some combination of three familiar stimulants: caffeine, found naturally in coffee, tea and cacao; guarana, an Amazonian plant rich in caffeine; and taurine, a naturally occurring amino acid found in scallops, mussels, turkey and chicken. Related: Taurine, in particular, has drawn both hype and hope. It is credited with performance-enhancing properties and potential health benefits. But new research is raising important questions about how it behaves in the body – and when it might do more harm than good. In May 2025, a study published in Nature sparked headlines and unease in equal measure. It found that taurine may fuel the progression of leukaemia, a group of blood cancers that begin in the bone marrow. The study showed that while healthy bone marrow cells naturally produce taurine, leukaemia cells cannot. But they can absorb taurine from their surroundings and use it as a fuel source to grow and multiply. Research on mice and in human leukaemia cell samples demonstrated that taurine in the tumour microenvironment – the area around a tumour that includes blood vessels, immune cells and structural support – accelerated the progression of leukaemia. Crucially, when researchers blocked taurine uptake by leukaemia cells (using genetic techniques), cancer progression slowed significantly. The authors suggest taurine supplements could potentially worsen outcomes in people with leukaemia and propose that developing targeted ways to block taurine uptake by cancer cells might offer a new treatment strategy. Taurine: friend or foe? Taurine is one of the most abundant free amino acids in the human body, found in especially high concentrations in the heart, muscles and brain. In healthy people, it's mainly obtained through diet, but the body can also synthesise taurine from the amino acids methionine and cysteine, provided it has enough vitamin B6, which is found in foods such as salmon, tuna, chicken, bananas and milk. Most people consuming a typical western diet take in 40mg–400mg of taurine a day from food alone. This figure refers only to taurine that is directly ingested, not including the additional amount the body can synthesise internally, which may vary depending on age, diet and health. Taurine is listed on the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) generally recognised as safe (GRAS) database, and according to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), it's safe to consume up to six grams per day. By comparison, a serving of Red Bull or Monster contains around one gram – comfortably below that threshold. Despite recent concerns about a possible link to blood cancer progression, taurine isn't inherently harmful. In fact, some people may benefit from supplementation, especially those receiving long-term parenteral nutrition, where nutrients are delivered directly into the bloodstream because the gut isn't working properly. People with chronic liver, kidney or heart failure may also have trouble producing or holding on to enough taurine, making supplementation helpful in specific clinical settings. Ironically, some research suggests taurine may actually help reduce the side effects of chemotherapy in leukaemia patients – even as emerging studies raise concerns that it could also fuel the disease. This contradiction underscores how much context matters: the effects of taurine depend not just on dosage and delivery, but also on the patient's underlying condition. What helps in one context, could harm in another. But here's the catch: taking taurine as a supplement for particular health reasons is very different from consuming large quantities through energy drinks, which often combine taurine with high levels of caffeine and sugar. This combination can put strain on the heart, interfere with sleep and increase the risk of side effects, particularly for people with underlying health conditions or those taking other stimulants. The latest research raises important questions about whether taurine-heavy products could be harmful in some cases, especially for people with, or at risk of, blood cancers. So, should you worry? According to the current evidence, if you're a healthy adult who occasionally sips an energy drink, there's little cause for alarm. But moderation is key. Consuming multiple high-taurine drinks daily or taking taurine supplements (without prior professional consultation), on top of a taurine-rich diet might not be wise, especially if future research confirms links between taurine and cancer progression. Until more is known, the safest approach would be to enjoy your energy boosts by consuming a nutritious diet rather than consuming energy drinks. If you have any underlying health conditions – or a family history of cancer – it's always best to consult a healthcare professional before diving into taurine supplementation or consumption of energy drinks. Gulshanara (Rumy) Begum, Senior Lecturer in Nutrition & Exercise Science, University of Westminster This article is republished from under a Creative Commons license. Read the . Related News Study of 1.2 Million Children Finds No Risk From Common Vaccine Additive Signs of Autism Could Be Encoded in The Way You Walk It's True: Soup Can Help You Recover Faster From Colds And Flus Solve the daily Crossword
