Survivors
As Guests of honour, survivors walk the opening lap. They serve as a reminder that cancer does not discriminate and show that more people are surviving cancer than ever before. Survivors are also welcome to attend and experience the event in their own way.
Once registered, all survivors receive a welcome pack. They are also able to nominate someone who has supported them through their illness to walk alongside them.
Lynn is a proud cancer survivor. You can read her story below.
You can join Lynn and register as a Relay For Life Ascot survivor here. Follow the link inviting you to take part as a survivor.
In June 2007 I lost my Dad to cancer. Dad died surrounded by his family and I’m so glad that we had a chance to say goodbye. About 8 months later my dad’s younger brother also died from lung cancer. He was the third of 6 siblings to die from cancer, as my Auntie died from breast cancer 40 years ago. More recently dad's older brother and sister have died from cancer.
So, when I saw a small ad in the local paper asking for teams to take part in a new event raising funds for Cancer Research UK, I signed the family up straight away. We didn’t know what we were letting ourselves in for and little did I know how much impact that first Relay was going to have on my life.
Around this time I discovered a lump in my breast, at first I shrugged it off as something hormonal but when it didn’t go away I decided to get it checked out. And a few days before taking part in the first Relay For Life Ascot I was diagnosed with grade 2 breast cancer. It was a huge shock and I felt so scared as everyone I knew who had been diagnosed with cancer had died.
We decided to go ahead with Relay and when we arrived at the racecourse on the Saturday the chair tried to persuade me to take part in the survivors lap I decided not to take part. I didn’t feel like a survivor and at that point didn’t feel that I had much of a future.
However, that changed as I watched a purple army of cancer survivors walk round the track and I realised that people did survive cancer. I talked to some survivors and realised that there was Hope. Hope that I would survive and hope for a future.
I left Relay that weekend feeling more positive and ready to face whatever treatment was given to me. I also vowed to return the following year and walk that first survivors lap. I'm proud to say that I still walk that survivors lap every year.
