Luke Bolton

After his son Jaxon was diagnosed with epithelioid sarcoma, Luke committed himself to an ambitious programme of fundraising challenges for Sarcoma UK.

His efforts have included major endurance events, while his family and community have rallied around Jaxon’s Fund. Together, their fundraising has raised thousands of pounds for epithelioid sarcoma research.

Marshall Exler

Marshall, known as Big Papi to his hundreds of thousands of social media followers, has raised tens of thousands of pounds for Sarcoma UK following his wife Faye’s diagnosis with sarcoma.

After Faye died in December 2024, Marshall completed an extraordinary 100,000-step treadmill challenge in her memory, livestreaming the event to his followers and using his platform to raise both funds and awareness of sarcoma. In August 2026, he announced that he would be taking part in the TCS London Marathon to riase funds for Sarcoma UK.

MAN vs FAT Carlisle

Members of MAN v FAT Carlisle took on a 48-mile winter walk to support their teammate Glen Wiedman and his wife Laura during her treatment for a rare sarcoma.

The challenge was called 48 for 48, with one mile for each person diagnosed with Laura’s type of sarcoma in a typical year. Thirteen men set off from Elterwater in the Lake District, with eight completing the full route back to Carlisle. They walked continuously for more than 28 hours, climbing around 10,000 feet through freezing temperatures, ice, snow, heavy rain and strong winds.

The group raised £14,474.61 for Sarcoma UK from 493 donations. Their challenge also brought the wider Carlisle community together and generated local media coverage, helping more people understand the realities of living with a rare sarcoma.

Northampton Academy: 24 Hours for Ella

Northampton Academy brought students, staff and families together for 24 Hours for Ella, supporting Year 9 student Ella Benjamin and raising awareness of osteosarcoma.

Staff and Year 12 students kept a continuous relay going in the school courtyard for 24 hours, walking, running and cycling in 15-minute slots. Together they covered 764 kilometres on exercise bikes and 279 kilometres on treadmills, the equivalent of 6.6 marathons.

The wider school community joined in through a non-uniform day, song requests and PE challenges. The academy reports that the campaign raised more than £7,000 for Sarcoma UK. It also gave Ella’s story a prominent platform across the school and local community, helping young people and families learn about a cancer many had never heard of before.

Rowan and Ryan: Rare but Real

Rowan Sutcliffe and Ryan Womersley live on the same lane in Addingham and were both diagnosed with rare sarcomas. Rowan was diagnosed with primary cardiac angiosarcoma at 17 and had his tumour removed in November 2023. Ryan was diagnosed with epithelioid sarcoma in March 2025 and underwent surgery and radiotherapy.

They brought their community together for a 10-kilometre stretcher race from The Fleece in Addingham to the top of Beamsley Beacon and back, climbing more than 1,300 feet. Ryan’s former Royal Marine colleagues, local volunteers, businesses and residents all supported the challenge.

Their Rare but Real campaign raised £11,839.42 for Sarcoma UK from 182 donations. By sharing their diagnoses and completing the challenge together, Rowan and Ryan also helped make two exceptionally rare types of sarcoma more visible.

Ella Benjamin

Ella Benjamin, 14, from Northampton, was diagnosed with osteosarcoma when she was 12. She went through chemotherapy and surgery to replace her knee with a tailor-made titanium joint. Her cancer later returned and spread to her lung.

Ella has spoken openly about her experience and used her own fundraising page to encourage other young people affected by cancer to stay strong and make memories with the people they love. Her story has been shared by regional media and across her school and local community.

Fundraising inspired by Ella has now raised more than £16,000 for Sarcoma UK. It has included a community 5K involving around 50 people and Northampton Academy’s 24 Hours for Ella challenge. The academy has also renamed its annual pupil of the year award in her honour.

Eva Rainey

Eva Rainey, from Wells in Somerset, was diagnosed with the ultra-rare cancer sclerosing epithelioid fibrosarcoma at 13. Three years on, after major surgery, radiotherapy and two experimental drugs, she has continued studying for her GCSEs and creating art.

Eva and her parents, Jennifer and Paul, have repeatedly shared her story through national and regional media, including The Sun, the Mirror and Somerset Live. Eva also appeared with her parents in a Sarcoma UK film about hope and the urgent need for research into ultra-rare sarcomas.

Her paintings raised £1,200 at a Sarcoma UK parliamentary event and £2,500 at the Glitter Ball. Eva’s openness has inspired wider fundraising too, including more than £10,000 from her headteacher’s walk and £15,000 from her father’s Team Eva cycle.

Hugo Turpin

Hugo Turpin, 19, from Oxfordshire, has used a series of endurance challenges to tell the story of his childhood friend Olly Foster and raise awareness of synovial sarcoma.

Olly was first diagnosed at 10. His cancer returned last summer, when he was 18, and he underwent intensive chemotherapy followed by a below-knee amputation. Hugo responded by completing the Stockholm Marathon, climbing Mount Kilimanjaro and running a three-day, 96-mile ultramarathon. Olly joined him for the final two miles.

Hugo has raised more than £25,000 for Sarcoma UK. He also involved schools in the campaign, including a fair and chapel collection, while a video explaining Olly’s story received more than 100,000 views. His work has taken awareness of synovial sarcoma well beyond his immediate friends and family.