Man preparing for London Marathon says he can 'never repay' care given to wife at Thorpe Hall Hospice

A man preparing to take on the 26 miles of the London Marathon has said he can never repay the care given to his wife at Sue Ryder Thorpe Hall Hospice.

Sam McCormick will be running the iconic marathon next month to raise money for Sue Ryder, after they provided care and support for his wife, Hannah, who died aged just 32 earlier this year after she was diagnosed with cancer.

Sam, who is Deputy Head Academic at Stamford High School, is hoping to raise £10,000 for Sue Ryder on the run.

He said: “I will never be able to put into words how much the team at Sue Ryder Thorpe Hall Hospice helped my young family and it will be an honour to raise money by running the marathon for them.”

Hannah was first diagnosed with cervical cancer in March 2019 when she was pregnant with her second child and the couple’s daughter Beatrix was just two-and-a-half.

Although chemotherapy was successful by June 2020 she was feeling unwell again and a scan in August confirmed the cancer had returned in her lymph nodes.

Further chemotherapy was successful and although Hannah felt better through spring 2021, by the end of May she had developed a persistent cough and a further scan confirmed the cancer had spread to her lungs.

Sam said: “The Sue Ryder team were all amazing in those last two weeks in the care they gave to Hannah. They probably don’t even realise the impact they have. The way they were able to give her just all the time in the world.

“I just want to raise as much as I can for Sue Ryder. From the welcoming face on reception, to the nursing assistants who made us tea and sat with Hannah making sure she felt safe. To the nurses who gave us all the time in the world and never made us feel like they were rushing off to the next patients and the doctors who supported me just as much as they cared for Hannah. They were all amazing.”

To donate to Sam’s fundraising total, visit his Just Giving page at https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/sam-mccormick3