A record year for Leukaemia UK London Marathon runners

62 runners are putting their best feet forward for Leukaemia UK, including Exeter University student Ellie who is donning her orange shirt to raise money and awareness after her Dad underwent a bone marrow transplant.

A record 62 runners are taking part in this year’s London marathon to help fund vital research into leukaemia diagnosis, treatment and care, and raise awareness of a disease that sadly kills nearly 5000 men, women and children each year.

The runners have already raised over £73,000 for the charity Leukaemia UK, with much of their fundraising still to come. It’s hoped their efforts will ultimately raise over £80,000.

They’ll be proudly wearing the charity’s orange shirt and coming together to raise money to help Leukaemia UK save and improve the lives of those impacted by leukaemia by accelerating progress in diagnosis, treatment and care.

Fiona Hazell, Chief Executive of Leukaemia UK, said: “This is a record year for London Marathon entrants for team Leukaemia UK. We are incredibly grateful to each and every one of the 62 runners who are taking part in order to accelerate progress for those who receive a leukaemia diagnosis. Thanks to their fantastic fundraising efforts, together the runners aim to raise over £80,000. This money will be used by Leukaemia UK to fund life-changing research to stop leukaemia devastating lives.

Earlier this year we launched our new strategy and brand, featuring the distinctive orange that is the international colour of leukaemia. It will be an amazing moment to see the runners coming together in their orange shirts, and we hope their incredible efforts will raise not just money but awareness of leukaemia as well. Each and every one has a personal reason for running, and we wish them a very successful day.”

Every day, 27 people in the UK – almost 10,000 every year - receive the devastating news that they have leukaemia. Despite decades of incredible progress, only half of leukaemia patients live longer than five years after their diagnosis.

Ellie Spark from Baughurst in Hampshire is running as a tribute to her Dad Oliver Spark who was diagnosed with leukaemia in 2015. 

Oliver was 50 and extremely active and fit when he noticed bruising on his body - one of the four key symptoms of leukaemia which also include bleeding, infections and fatigue. But he had no other signs and had been running on the morning before he saw his doctor.  

Oliver’s GP referred him for tests and he was diagnosed with Acute Lymphblastic Leukaemia (ALL).

Oliver had four months of chemotherapy and was then given a bone marrow transplant. He is still on medication but is now thankfully in remission.

Ellie, 22, who’s in her final year of a business and management degree at Exeter University, said: “From someone who was incredibly fit, when Dad came home to use on Christmas Eve he couldn’t walk up the stairs. It was a very quick adjustment for our family as it all happened overnight. My dad got a call one night and the next day he was in hospital for six months. The doctors and nurses were amazing, but it was all a bit of a strange experience at the time. For a year afterwards it was very hard of our family – I’ve got four siblings, the youngest of which whom was eight at the time. And Mum and Dad had just started having a complete rebuild of our home which had been knocked down. It was chaos. We couldn’t hug him and if we had a cold we had to stay with a friend.”

After his treatment was successful, Oliver left his job as Managing Director of a sofa and bed company and started his own business. He also volunteered as Treasurer of Leukaemia UK from 2018 to 2022 and worked for other charities to publicise the importance of becoming a bone marrow donor.

Ellie added: “Since my Dad has had his bone marrow transplant I have run a few events to get people onto the bone marrow data base. We are forever indebted to my dad’s donor. Running the marathon is another way I can fund this valuable work and also hope to raise awareness.

“I have always done a lot of sport, but more like netball and athletics - nothing with this much endurance training. I am really looking forward to the atmosphere, it will be a lot more fun than the long training runs on my own. I hadn’t even really heard of blood cancers before my Dad became ill. Now I want to do all I can to raise awareness about the work of Leukaemia UK and the importance of research.”