Pride of Britain: Northamptonshire man with terminal cancer raises thousands with 190-mile-walk
Ian Hensley has been shortlisted for ITV News Anglia's Regional Fundraiser of the Year Award, as Sophie Wiggins reports.
A man with terminal blood cancer has raised thousands of pounds for charity by tackling an almost 200 mile walk across England.
Ian Hensley, 70, from Gayton in Northamptonshire, has myeloma - a blood cancer without a cure.
He was diagnosed with the disease in September 2021 and given a life expectancy of between two and five years.
The cancer is hard to diagnose because the symptoms, such as back pain, fatigue, and easily broken bones, are often linked to general ageing conditions.
Around eight people die from myeloma every day and while Mr Hensley will not see any benefit from a cure, he has dedicated the rest of his life to raising money for Myeloma UK in the hopes it will help find a cure for others.
“I think one of the reasons I wanted to do this was because, how long am I here for, we don’t know that, nobody does," said Ian.
"I’m not likely to benefit from any cure, but hopefully someone else will.
"When the walk came along, it boosted me a little bit. I had something to aim for now and it helped me through what's been the toughest part of my life so far.
"I just really wanted to do two things, raise some money and more importantly, raise awareness."
In May, Mr Hensley embarked on a gruelling, 190 mile walk between the coast of Cumbria and North Yorkshire.
His efforts have seen him shortlisted for ITV News Anglia's 2024 Regional Fundraiser of the Year Award for the Pride of Britain Awards.
He says his wife, Gill, has been his biggest support throughout it all.
“His diagnosis was devastating, and it completely changes your life and the way you look at things," said Mrs Hensley.
"But his sheer will and determination to raise the money, and to actually do it for his own satisfaction, was amazing.”
The terminal condition has left Mr Hensley with a crumbling spine and causes him a significant amount of pain.
During his walk, he had to be administered morphine to get through it, but managed to complete the walk and raise £14,000 in the process.
Mr Hensley continues to go through chemotherapy at Northampton General Hospital and does not know how long he has left to live, but is planning more challenging walks for later this year, including a 90-mile-walk in the Scottish Highlands in October.
He is hoping to reach his fundraising goal of £25,000.
When asked what it would mean to win the Regional Fundraiser of the Year Award, Mr Hensley said: "Since I got diagnosed, it’s been the hardest bit of my life so far.
"I think if we were to win the local award, we would have achieved an awful lot.”
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