Brain tumour survivor runs Bath Half with sisters

THREE Melksham sisters have raised almost £2,000 for charity by running the Bath Half Marathon after one of the sisters spent  months recovering from a brain tumour last year.

Becky Vaina and her two sisters Gemma Mullan and Samantha Morrison, ran the Bath Half alongside more than 12,000 other runners earlier this month. The sisters raised over £1,900 in sponsorship for the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford, where Becky had a brain tumour removed last year.

Becky said, “The run went really, really well and the atmosphere was brilliant. The crowd spurs you on and we stuck together for the whole race, so I enjoyed it. It’s totally different to running on your own.”

Becky had to have two operations on her brain to remove a benign tumour in July last year. She was active before the procedure but was too weak to walk after a lengthy hospital stay. Now, she has run 13 miles to raise money for the hospital that cared for her.

“I was really proud to have finished because eight months ago I couldn’t even stand up,” Becky said. “My legs were too weak after spending longer than three weeks in hospital for my operations.

“We were so pleased to raise almost £2,000 for the charity. Our original target was only £300, so it was quite emotional when so many people donated – we’ve had great support from our family friends and colleagues.

“It’s such a good cause so we’d like to do more fundraising in future, but we’re having a rest for now!”