“I don’t think you’re dying,” I said, “I think you’ve just got a touch of cancer.”
– John Green, The Fault In Our Stars
I am sure by now you will have all heard of the remarkable 19 year old that was Stephen Sutton. I don’t want to describe him as a cancer sufferer but instead, a cancer fighter. Stephen had been raising money for the Teenage Cancer Trust for years but in the last few weeks of his life his quest gained unprecedented momentum.
Stephen was diagnosed with cancer at the age of 15 and was told in early 2013 that his disease was incurable. It is impossible to imagine how you’d feel after being told this shattering news. Stephen had always wanted to become a doctor but with this dream now impossible he set his sights on helping others in any other way possible. In January 2013 he set up his Facebook page ’Stephen’s Story’ with the aim of publicising his journey by completing a bucket list. The main entry on the bucket list was to raise £10,000 for Teenage Cancer Trust. Even though he’d just been told the worst news possible he didn’t focus on the darkness – his first thought was to help other people. At the time of writing, Stephen has smashed this total many times over and at the moment the total money raised stands little off £4,000,000. This total has beaten every record held on the Just Giving website, resulting in Just Giving themselves donating £50,000 towards Stephens cause! HOW AMAZING!
Statistically 1 in 3 people will have cancer at some point in their life. I imagine that almost everyone who is reading this knows someone personally who has suffered with the disease hence why it is so important for us to raise money for charities which support these people. Teenage Cancer Trust was founded in 1990 and aims, first and foremost, to treat young people with cancer. They make sure that they are treated along with other people of the same age and try and make the experience as comfortable as possible for them whilst pushing for education and research. My mum was diagnosed with a form of skin cancer called melanoma when she was just 18 and in the middle of her first year at college. In the UK, melanoma is the most common cancer in people aged 15 – 34. If only the Teenage Cancer Trust could have been around for her to make her experience, treatment, and recovery easier and more suitable for her age. My mum is another one of these cancer fighters and it is amazing people like Stephen Sutton raising these staggering amounts of money which means more of these sufferers continue to be here with us now. Hopefully in the future cancer will be a thing of the past.
Stephen Sutton is an inspiration. Despite the fact his condition was been denounced as incurable, he was probably one of the most positive people you could meet. He lived every day to the fullest and I think there are many things we can learn from him. When we are sitting here in the library grumpy and ‘depressed’ that we have exams in a number of weeks we should think how lucky we are that we are well and able enough to sit these exams that young people like Stephen won’t be able to. We are able to pursue the first step towards our dream career. When we are moaning about how we have to go to the gym and do a workout, we should relish that we have the physical ability to do exercise. Instead of thinking so negatively we should take each day as it comes, try and do more with our days and not sweat the small stuff. As much as you feel down or stressed at the moment, ask yourself: is it really that bad in the grand scale of things? Its a blessing in itself that our life involves a future. I’m definitely guilty of being negative and lazing in bed when I could be so much more productive, and this is something Stephen has inspired me to change. The two things I have taken away from Stephen’s story are;
1) It’s not all about raising money but also about changing attitudes
2) To remain positive and make the most of every day
The picture above was taken when Stephen posted on his Facebook that this was his ‘final thumbs up’. Despite his recent updates saying his condition was slightly improving, on the 14th May 2014, Stephen sadly passed away. Stephen continued to raise money and spread his ‘can-do’ attitude days before his death and his message of positivity will be around for many years to come.
Recently Her Campus Aberdeen held a MacMillan night in for our members and we hope to hold many more charity nights next academic year so please get involved!
If you want to read more about Stephen’s Story, just click on these links;
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/stephensstory
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/_stephensstory
And if you want to donate to the cause;
http://www.justgiving.com/Stephen-Sutton-TCT
In memory of Stephen Sutton 1994 – 2014.