Royal Hallamshire Hospital radiographers to take on 100km walk for charity

On September 12 and 13, therapeutic radiographers Kelly Gray and Hollie Thomas will ‘jog and walk’ the mammoth 62-mile Thames Path Challenge between Putney and Henley for The Brain Tumour Charity.

The pair are no strangers to a challenge, they say, but Hollie, 29, said that it was only recently that sheer scale of what they were taking on had become clear.

“We do a challenge every year but this time we wanted to do something that would really push us,” she said.

“But we didn’t really grasp what we were doing until we signed up. It is massive.

“We will be setting off at 7am and the halfway point is not until 1 the next morning.

“Everyone at works thinks we’re a bit crazy and at this point I would probably agree with them!”

The pair will be starting training in earnest soon and have organised a night walk from Sheffield to Barnsley next month.

“We’ve both got a late shift at work so we’re going to walk from the Hallamshire to Kelly’s house in Barnsley,” said Hollie.

“It’s 16 miles and we think it should take us about five and a half hours!”

The two friends and colleagues work in the stereotactic radiosurgery department at the hospital, treating various tumours and conditions of the brain.

While the care their team provides there is first rate, Hollie says there is always more that can be done - both to support those who get the disease and to fund research into better treatments.

“There is only so much we can provide to our patients,” she said.

“The charity have been brilliant so far and they can access a lot more help and support for patients and their families than we can.”

The Brain Tumour Charity is the world's leading brain tumour charity and the largest dedicated funder of research into brain tumours globally.

To donate to Hollie and Kelly’s challenge, visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/kelly-gray9.

To find out more about the Brain Tumour Charity, visit https://www.thebraintumourcharity.org.