Recently I got in touch with The Robin Cancer Trust to offer my support. The Freeman family created the trust after the death of their son and brother Robin, due to germ cell cancer. When my friend Anne told me about this cause, I felt compelled to get in touch as a germ cell cancer survivor myself. Please see below an interview with Toby, Robin's brother. Toby is right - there isn't much information available about germ cell cancer, so please do all you can to spread the word about this great charity.
1. Please tell us about your brother Robin.
I know people say this a
lot about people who have passed away, but Rob really was such a nice guy. He
was model handsome, in great shape and to round it all off was the funniest guy
in the room. He had every reason to be arrogant and cocky and yet he was the
most modest, down-to-earth guy who just wanted to settle-down with a solid
career and start a family. They say only the good die young and I don't think
you'd meet anyone who knew Rob who would say otherwise.
Rob worked for Dad as a
junior project worker and loved it. He was working full-time with University
one-day a week working towards getting his degree. He played football with me
on Sundays and had earned himself the nickname Robdog within weeks of playing,
just because he showed how good he was (he never stopped running!). He also
loved playing the drums, something he enjoyed with my other brother Adam as
they both played an instrument. Some of my happiest memories is spending three
summers at Reading Music Festival with my brothers enjoying our favourite bands
as luckily we all enjoy the same type of music.
2. Why did you and your family create the
Robin Cancer Trust?
After Rob passed away we
all sat down at the table, looked at each other and said ‘Something good has to
come from this'. One thing we noticed
very quickly after Rob's diagnosis was the fact that there was very little
information available, especially in one place on the internet, regarding Germ
Cell Cancer. We didn't want another family to go through what we did without the
facts so we decided to become that hub of information. It wasn't a decision we
made lightly, we knew that this would be a life-long commitment, but we just
thought if we could save just one life through raising awareness then it would
be worth it.
3. How can readers get involved with the
Robin Cancer Trust?
The Robin Cancer Trust
has been set up for one goal: to raise awareness of Germ Cell Cancers in 16-35
year olds. The easiest way to help us do this is by making yourself aware of
the signs & symptoms and helping us spread the word. We live in an age when
information is freely available to us, so the easiest thing to do is visit our
website, learn the facts and then tell your friends and families. If you’re a
guy, make sure you do a Testicular Self-Examination once a month. If you're a
girl make sure you know the Signs & Symptoms and know your body so you can
tell when it doesn't feel right. Knowledge truly is power in the fight against
cancer. If you're well equipped then you stand the best chance of catching it
early and getting a better diagnosis.
Just sharing a link on Facebook or
Re-Tweeting on Twitter could give your friends the reminder they need to check
themselves, or learn the vital information. It's not always about giving money;
come down to an event and get involved if you're interested in what we're
doing! If you're a survivor or have been affected by GCC then get in touch and
we'll help you spread your story so that others can learn from it. We're aiming
to raise awareness of the facts and get people talking about all Germ Cell
Cancers. If we do that, then we can make a difference.
Photos courtesy of Toby Freeman
www.therobincancertrust.org
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