Cancer Research UK Annual Review 2011/12

20 | Cancer survivors give hope to others
Campaigning for life-saving radiotherapy
Relentless altitude sickness. Temperatures of -20º C.
Trekking over rough terrain for 10 hours a day.
John McVey, 48, says his 2011 fundraising trip
to Everest Base Camp pushed him to his limits.
But he rose to the challenge and completed the
trek. ‘Having cancer changed the way I view
things,’ he says. ‘Now, when I decide I want
to do something, I do it.’
John, from North Wales, was diagnosed with
tongue cancer in 2005. His treatment included
a complex operation to remove part of his tongue
and 32 rounds of radiotherapy in just six weeks.
It’s now six years since John finished treatment
and he’s made a full recovery.
Voice for Radiotherapy
Radiotherapy cures many more people than
cancer drugs. It’s extremely cost effective, and up
to half of all cancer patients could benefit from it.
Yet our YouGov survey of more than 2,000 people
revealed that just 14% were aware of this.
My cancer
was treatable
and that’s thanks
to the work of
organisations like
Cancer Research UK.
If I’d had it 20
years ago, very little
could have been
done for me.
John McVey
That’s why we launched the ‘Voice for Radiotherapy’
campaign in 2011. It aimed to raise awareness
about just how important radiotherapy is for
cancer patients. Over 36,000 people signed our
petition to Government to demand that the best
radiotherapy treatments are available to everyone
who needs them.
Our pioneering research laid the foundations of modern radiotherapy.