Emily's legacy: Crowdfunding campaign raises £100K for cancer research
Emily Parsons and her family
Emily Parson's family visit the research team at CRUK's Children’s Brain Tumour Centre of Excellence, which Emily helped raise £100K for.
Emily Parson's family visit the research team at CRUK's Children’s Brain Tumour Centre of Excellence, which Emily helped raise £100K for.
Emily Parson's family visit the research team at CRUK's Children’s Brain Tumour Centre of Excellence, which Emily helped raise £100K for.
Emily Parsons was just twenty-two when she was diagnosed with a rare and currently incurable spinal cord tumour—diffuse midline glioma with the H3 K27M mutation. Emily was given only months to live but spent that time fundraising for a Cambridge research group working to find new treatment options.
I know it makes sense for more common cancers to get lots of funding, but people like me exist too, and we need help and options.
Emily Parsons
Emily set up a JustGiving page to help raise money to support a research project at the Cancer Research UK Children’s Brain Tumour Centre of Excellence (CRUK-CBTCE) based on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus near Addenbrooke’s Hospital, where Emily received treatment. Scientists at the CRUK-CBTCE hope to find ways to slow down the progress and ultimately cure tumours in the central nervous system in children and young adults with the H3 K27M mutation.
Writing on her JustGiving page about why she wanted to fundraise for this project, Emily wrote:
“The type of tumour I have is so rare that there's no real information out there. I don’t want anyone else to go through this, so I'm determined to raise money to help with research. Sadly, it wouldn’t have made a difference for me, but perhaps reading this can save someone else."
Emily passed away on May 6 2021, just seven months after being diagnosed. Before her death, Emily raised more than £66,000—far exceeding her initial goal of £10,000. Her family have continued her fundraising campaign, raising a total of £100K for the research team at the CRUK-CBTCE Addenbrooke's.
Speaking about Emily’s extraordinary legacy, Director of the CRUK Cambridge Centre and Head of the Department of Oncology at the University of Cambridge, Professor Richard Gilbertson, said:
“I want to say how much Emily inspired us all here. It was amazing to meet her and just to see the passion in her life as she sought to improve the lives of those who suffer from brain tumours.”
In December, Professor Gilbertson and research group leader, Dr Manav Pathania, hosted Emily’s mum and step-dad, Lisa and Paul Smart, at the Jeffrey Cheah Biomedical Centre where Dr Pathania’s research group is based. During their visit, they toured the laboratories and met the scientists working on developing new treatments for the types of rare cancers that tragically cut Emily’s life short.
Speaking about their visit, Lisa Smart said:
“It was a really inspiring visit for Paul and I. We are so proud of Emily’s legacy, and it was fantastic to meet the team and to see their passion to make a difference.”
The money Emily raised has already funded a new research assistant as well as helping the CRUK-CBTCE establish important collaborations with international research partners and pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca.
Dr Pathania thanked all of those who donated to the fund:
“We want to acknowledge your contributions. The truly amazing amount of funding you have all gathered, and the awareness you have raised for this debilitating disease. It is truly astounding what you have done and an amazing testament to Emily’s continuing legacy.”
Find out more about the CRUK Children's Brain Tumour Centre of Excellence.
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