I'm having real trouble not typing all of this in capitals right now. I'm just too excited. In fact, excited doesn't even cover it. Hysterical, maybe? Today I successfully reached my target of £2995 for the Association of International Cancer Research!!!!!



It's been an exhausting 10 months. Absolutely exhausting. Back in June, I remember looking at the target with a huge amount of trepidation. £2995 wasn't the kind of 'doing a fun run, chuck me a fiver' kind of money I was used to seeing people raise. The idea of coming up with that amount money without pouring my entire student loan into it made me extremely uneasy. Three grand doesn't just grow on trees.

It was only thanks to incredibly generous friends and family that I made it all this way. I am still dumbstruck by the kindness people have shown in response to what I'll be doing this summer.

I've mentioned before that my family has been struck with a statistically unfair amount of cancer. Getting the chance to battle against this terrible disease was the main reason for my signing up to climb Kili in the first place. What greatly relieves me is that even if I don't make it up the mountain for whatever reason (e.g. altitude sickness, clumsy fall, trampled by an angry bull elephant, etc., etc.) I have already raised over £3000 for a charity that has made it their mission to research the cause, diagnosis, treatment and prevention of cancer, regardless of borders. Not many people can say that.

Thank you once again to everyone for helping me get this far! All that's left for me to do now is to head out to Africa and climb the tallest free-standing mountain in the world (gulp)!