Leave a legacy

Jo from Dundee has seen just how devastating cancer can be. Now, he’s pledged to help fund lifesaving research by leaving a gift in his Will to Cancer Research UK

Passing on family heirlooms, sharing grainy photographs or even telling tales of times gone by… There are plenty of ways you can create a lasting legacy, but perhaps none have such a huge impact as helping to beat cancer for future generations. Father-of-four Jo is doing just that. After friends and family, he has pledged to leave a share of his Will to Cancer Research UK to help the charity continue its life-saving work.

“I’m leaving a legacy gift because we’ve been fighting cancer as a family since my wife was diagnosed,” Jo explains – and what a tough fight it’s been. It all began in 1993 when Sue was diagnosed with a very rare cancer of the adrenal gland. It had spread into her bones and the family were told that she had just six months to live. “This was very hard for us as our children were just young teenagers back then,” says Jo.

Despite being given six months to live, Sue was able to have ground-breaking treatment that allowed her to live for 10 more years and be there for her family. She even got the chance to realise her dreams of travelling across the globe with Jo.

It was a devastating blow to the family when Sue passed away, and several years later they discovered that the gene that caused her cancer was hereditary. Jo’s youngest children, twins Jennie and James, also had the faulty gene and went on to develop the disease. James’ cancer has since been operated on and Jennie has received targetted radiotherapy. Last March, the family also found out that Jennie’s tumours had spread to her bones.

For Jo, and countless people across the UK, the fight against cancer is far from over. In fact, one in two people in the UK born after 1960 will get the disease in their lifetimes. “I hope the gift in my Will can help find a way of treating people who have the rare SDHB gene,” says Jo. “Cancer Research UK will get 20% of my estate, which means it is inflation proof and I think that is very important. I will continue to fight cancer until I pass away, so why not continue to fight cancer when I am gone?”