When Bryony Satchell laces up her running shoes, it is for someone who can’t be there to see it – her mother, Rachel.
Rachel often spoke about how much she would love to watch her daughter run the London Marathon one day. It was never something she witnessed herself but it was a dream she shared with Bryony. After Rachel passed away, Bryony began running as a way to cope with her grief and to honour the promise she now carries with her.
On 26 April, Bryony, 26, from Norfolk, will run the TCS London Marathon in her mum’s memory, raising money for Sarcoma UK. She will be supported on the day by her younger brother Ethan, 20.
Rachel Satchell died on 3 December 2023, just nine days after her 53rd birthday from myxoid liposarcoma, a rare and aggressive form of cancer.
Rachel was first diagnosed with sarcoma in 2008 after a lump was found in her groin. After surgery and radiotherapy, she was eventually given the all-clear. But in 2021, life for the close-knit family, known as ‘The Three Musketeers’, changed forever when the cancer returned in a devastating form.
The cancer had spread to Rachel’s heart, forming a 15cm tumour that occupied and replaced 50 per cent of the right ventricle and pressed against surrounding organs. Due to its rarity, doctors told the family they were navigating uncharted waters. Rachel underwent open-heart surgery to remove as much of the tumour as possible (1.25kg), followed by perpetual radiotherapy and chemotherapy.
Despite a poor prognosis, Rachel continued to live with warmth, humour and strength. Those around her often had no idea what she was facing, right up until the family was told she had only days left to live – news that came as a profound shock.
Bryony said: ‘The pain this disease caused my brave mummy, as well as my brother and I, is something I wouldn’t wish upon anyone. To run a major marathon in her memory, while supporting a charity that means so much to us, is my biggest ambition. Everything I do is to make her proud.’
Emily Williams, Research Manager at Sarcoma UK, said: ‘Rachel’s story is a powerful reminder of why research into liposarcoma is so urgently needed. Liposarcoma is not one disease – it comes in different forms, each with its own biology and challenges. Rachel had myxoid liposarcoma, a subtype that remains poorly understood and difficult to treat when it recurs or spreads.
‘That is why we are funding researchers like Dr Zoë Walters at the University of Southampton, who is working on two vital projects. The first is building new laboratory models that include healthy immune cells alongside cancer cells for the first time – helping us understand why so few liposarcoma patients respond to immunotherapy, and how we can change that. This research has the potential to benefit patients across all liposarcoma subtypes, including myxoid.
‘In a second project, Dr Walters is using cutting-edge genetic analysis to find specific targets in dedifferentiated liposarcoma – one of the most aggressive forms – with the aim of identifying drugs that are both more effective and less harmful than current treatments. Together, this work could open the door to more personalised treatment for people facing exactly what Rachel faced. That is what drives everything we do at Sarcoma UK.’
To donate to Bryony, go to https://www.justgiving.com/page/bry
