A BIG thank you to Symonds and Sampson for supporting Ducks & Drakes Cancer Trust throughout 2018, raising £3,817.54!

​Ducks & Drakes Cancer Trust is pleased to have financially supported the Dorset County Hospital Cancer Appeal by raising and donating £75,000. The Trust would like to thank its supporters for their generous donations and tireless fundraising.  The Trust was founded to boost awareness of the signs and symptoms of bowel cancer, particularly in young people, along with financially supporting young bowel cancer patients and their families and local cancer services such as the Dorset County Hospital Cancer Appeal. The total amount of £1.75m raised locally funded the Cancer & Haematology Outpatients Department, which was built on top of the new Radiotherapy Unit.
 
The Robert White Centre was officially opened by Martin Clunes OBE in December 2013 and was attended by Ducks & Drakes Cancer Trust representatives, Annette Drake (co-founder) and Jane Weeden (Trustee).
 
Annette Drake says “We are very proud to be part of this incredible new state-of-the-art cancer treatment centre and are especially proud that our charity name is represented by a plaque on the door of Consulting Room 4, in memory of my son and co-founder, Andrew Drake, who died aged 30, from bowel cancer. Andrew always found a way to create hope and positivity out of sadness and this is a fabulous legacy for his never wilting courage and determination he showed throughout his 6 year illness.”
 
Simon Pearson, Head of Fundraising said, “Ducks and Drakes have supported us from the beginning of the Cancer Appeal and we are very grateful to them for their very significant donation of £75,000. The money they raised has helped us to reach our Appeal target and will allow us to continue to provide the best possible care for all our patients at the new Robert White Centre in Dorchester.”
 
The £9 million centre is an extension of the Poole Hospital-based Dorset Cancer Centre. The Dorchester unit is equipped with the latest linear accelerator (LINAC) which enables patients to receive the best-possible radiotherapy treatment. This means that cancer patients in the north, south and west of the county can receive this care in their local hospital, instead of having to travel to Poole for treatment.
 
The facility also includes a £1.75 million Cancer and Haematology Outpatients Department funded by the Cancer Appeal run by Dorset County Hospital Charity. This was supported by hundreds of donations from individuals, community groups as well as Trusts and Foundations, such as Ducks and Drakes Cancer Trust.