Cancer Survivor takes on challenge to raise awareness
Karen Raeburn, 42, was diagnosed with bowel cancer when she was just 37 years old.
The mum-of-two had part of her bowel removed and underwent six months of chemotherapy.
And now she is helping raise money for Bowel Cancer UK by taking part in the Buccleuch Property Challenge next month where teams will compete in a 60km race.
Karen said she wanted to help raise public awareness of the condition as early detection had helped save her life.
Karen said: “I only had one weekend of symptoms and almost didn’t go for my appointment but I did and am so thankful that I went.
“The key is to act on your instincts and not to be embarrassed; get any symptoms checked out to be on the safe side.
“Not for one moment did I think the cancer was going to beat me; I was always going to beat the cancer but a big part of that was an early diagnosis.
“To me, this challenge is a celebration of life; a celebration that I’m still here five years on and I feel the time is now right to give something back”.
The Buccleuch Challenge on September 7 will see teams from across Scotland compete at the Duke of Buccleuch’s Queensberry Estate in Dumfries & Galloway.
Karen, a web site coordinator with the Buccleuch Group in Peebles, faces an arduous cycle, running, kayaking and orienteering course.
She said she hoped people would sponsor her team and help support Bowel Cancer UK.
She said: “It was a scary time in my life and I will face regular check ups for years to come but I was one of the lucky ones.
“I want people to see that they can beat this disease and doing this challenge is a way of demonstrating that.”
Karen has been training hard for the last few months in preparation for the race.
Every week she had joined a mountain bike training group, Curly Trails, at Glentress.
She will join a team of three colleagues and hopes to finish the race in good time.
She said: “There’s no doubt that it will be difficult but I’ve faced harder challenges; I’m living proof that people do get better”.
Bowel cancer is the second most common cause of cancer death in the UK, affecting men and women equally.
Every year over 35,000 people in this country are diagnosed with the disease - that's someone every 15 minutes. Every year nearly 16,000 people in this country die from bowel cancer - claiming a life every 30 minutes.
To donate sponsorship money visit www.justgiving.co.uk/karenraeburn.
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