Rising to the challenge for charity

Caroline Bromley, Placement Manager in Veterinary Nursing and Veterinary Physiotherapy, is taking on a personal challenge in April 2020 in memory of her father, Robert. She shared her story with us and explained the fundraising she will be doing for her chosen charity.

Caroline will be cycling for AMMF, the UK's only Cholangiocarcinoma charity to raise money in her father's memory. She will cycle from Amsterdam to her family home, North Farm in Shropshire, over five days.

As the second most common primary liver cancer, Caroline is hoping her bike ride will help in raising awareness for the illness. Caroline has invited people to join her at any stage of the journey and, on her final day, April 17th, she will be cycling past Harper Adams campus and invites any staff and students wishing to get involved to join her from there.

It was in March 2019 that everything changed. Caroline explained: “Dad complained at the time of being exhausted. It wasn’t an unfamiliar complaint to hear - he was a farmer experiencing the many stresses and strains the lifestyle brings. A few days later, his fatigue continued to worsen and his skin tone began to discolour. It was at this point the decision was made that Dad needed to be assessed at hospital.

“After hospitalisation, the news was delivered to us that it had been found that Dad didn't have gallstones but a condition termed Cholangiocarcinoma, Bile Duct Cancer. We cannot even begin to explain the disbelief, shock and the sheer blow of the diagnosis at this point. It was further explained that this type of cancer is rare, life-threatening and at the stage it had been diagnosed, untreatable.

“4 weeks after the initial diagnosis, my lovely, kind-hearted Dad passed away.”

From her loss, Caroline is looking to raise awareness around Cholangiocarcinoma and help others in the same position.

To read more about Caroline’s story, you can see her JustGiving page here. If you would like to get involved in any stage of the cycling journey, you can get in touch with Caroline here.