Sign up to help cure blood cancer

I CAN still remember the first time I came across Anthony Nolan’s name.

It was 1975, I’d just been cast as Purdey in the New Avengers and I was 29 years old.

I picked up a newspaper and read about Shirley Nolan’s heart- breaking story.

She was frantically searching for a suitable bone marrow donor for her dear little boy, Anthony. He was desperately ill and it was his only chance of survival.

I was so moved by Anthony’s plight I immediately signed up to the bone marrow register created in his name.

Joining the register is such a simple act, but with potentially huge benefits for another living person.

It’s truly thrilling to think we can use a part of our body – a part we won’t miss, a part it won’t hurt us to give – to save a life.

Forty years on, it’s quite incredible to see how Anthony Nolan’s legacy has helped save so many lives.

Anthony Nolan cures blood cancer every single day, through stem cell transplants, world-leading research, campaigns and fundraising.

Even in Anthony Nolan’s 40th anniversary year though, the charity still needs your help.

For instance, two thirds of patients will not find a matching donor from within their families – instead they turn to Anthony Nolan to find them a stranger who is willing to donate their bone marrow, or blood stem cells.

This is why I am appealing to you, the readers, to find out how you can be the cure for blood cancer by visiting www. anthonynolan.org.

In this special 40th anniversary year for Anthony Nolan, you can help save lives and give people with cancer, and their families, more milestones – from birthdays and anniversaries, to graduations and even grandchildren.

Thank you for your support.

JOANNA LUMLEY Anthony Nolan Trust Agincourt Road

London