|  |  |  | | | | Researchers turn their hands to fundraising at Wickes | | | | |
| |  Gemma Austin, Laura Fullford and Dr Kathy Till
Release Date: 14 May 2008
Leukaemia Research-funded scientists across the UK took time out of their bank holiday weekend to collect money for the cancer charity at their local Wickes stores.
Researchers from the University of Liverpool collected at four Wickes stores across Liverpool, raising over £375 for Leukaemia Research! Dr Kathy Till said: “The collections went really well - the stores were all expecting us and were really helpful. Almost all the customers at the stores generously put money in our collecting buckets”.
Dr Till is leading a research project with Dr Robert Harris and Professor John Crawley at the University of Liverpool. The research, funded by Leukaemia Research, is investigating new ways to prevent the progression of chronic lymphocytic leukaemia and to improve the quality of life for patients diagnosed with this life-threatening disease.
Like so many of the researchers fundraising at the weekend, Dr Till and her team have pounded the pavements with collection buckets before. Sir Ian Botham, President of Leukaemia Research, came to Liverpool in 2006 during his 11th charity walk. The ability of Dr Till’s team to keep up with Beefy as he walked through the city centre helped Liverpool collect the second highest amount of donations along the route of his UK walk!
Dr Mark Rosenberg, whose work at the University of Manchester is also funded by Leukaemia Research, spent the day collecting at the Heaton Park store in Manchester on Sunday 4 May. His fundraising efforts were assisted by his mother who stole the show by dressing as Mary Poppins!
Dr Rosenberg said: “It was a really enjoyable day – my mother was definitely the main star!” Dr Rosenberg’s current laboratory project is a molecular analysis of the reasons behind multi-drug resistance in patients with leukaemia. It is hoped that this research will help towards the development of new and improved drugs.
Dr Karen Pulford, whose work at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford is also funded by Leukaemia Research, organised for volunteers and grant holders to lend a hand at the Oxford branch of Wickes. The store manager reported an amazing weekend, with Dr Pulford’s volunteers raising £400. With help from Wickes colleagues at the store, they made a total of £800 in just two days!
Wickes announced Leukaemia Research as its first national charity partnership in October 2006 and have raised over £400,000 so far. More collection days outside Wickes stores are being planned for August.
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