THE family of Dame Deborah James today shared their overwhelming pride – as her legacy fund hit a staggering £20.5million.
The milestone is “beyond her wildest dreams” and ensures “many more lives will be saved” four years after the 40-year-old Sun columnist died of bowel cancer in June 2022.
Deborah’s husband Seb Bowen, 46, told The Sun: “She would be blown away, it’s beyond even Deborah’s wildest dreams.
“I think she’d be over the moon at the projects we have funded, they have all been causes very close to her heart with the potential to make real change.
“Hugo, Eloise and I are incredibly proud that her legacy continues to help save lives.”
And Hugo, 18: added: “Hitting £20million is an amazing achievement and I’m so proud of everything the fund has and continues to do.”
To mark the incredible support, the family revealed the money will help fund two new research projects – including the Bowelbabe Vaccine, a quest to find a jab to prevent the disease that claimed Debs’ life.
Dad Alistair, 70, told The Sun: “If you had told Deborah in the last few weeks of her life that today we’d be celebrating raising £20.5million in less than four years, even she, with her incredible enthusiasm, would have laughed at you.
“We are so humbled by this amazing legacy created in her name, and we are determined for it to keep growing.”
Mum Heather added: “I can hear Deborah now, willing us to push for £30million, and why not? Let’s make it £30million, just think of the families we could help.
“If Deborah’s fund had been available when she was diagnosed in December 2016, she might still be with us.”
Given just days to live, the fierce campaigner launched her Bowelbabe Fund to raise money to help prevent “future Deborahs” from facing her fate.
Her aim was to hit £250,000 but within 24 hours the total stood at £1million – and just four years on, the fund has hit a staggering £20.5million.
The fund supports three charities close to Dame Debs’ heart, Cancer Research UK, Bowel Cancer UK and The Royal Marsden Foundation.
In her final column for The Sun, she told her followers: “I knew that I wanted to make sure I left a pot of money so that these charities can continue their hard work and ensure that one day we find a cure for cancer.”
And reacting the next day to news she had hit £1million, Debs added: “I’m just blown away, never in my wildest dreams did I think we’d hit that total in just 16 hours.
“I’m actually crying! It’s overwhelming to think we can continue to help fund some really vital projects with this money.”
Since Deborah’s death, her legacy has helped to fund a total of 16 projects, all aiming to help give bowel cancer patients more time with their loved ones.
Each and every project is carefully considered, by Deborah’s husband Seb and the couple’s children Hugo and Eloise, 16, her parents, sister Sarah and brother Ben.
“Deborah is at the heart of every decision we make,” Heather, 68, said.
“We stay true to the issues she cared so passionately about, raising awareness, early diagnosis and ultimately the quest for a cure.
“She would be so excited to learn about every single project, she was a big geek and knew that without scientific advances after her diagnosis, she wouldn’t have had as much time with us all.
“The drugs that kept her alive three to four years down the road hadn’t been available to bowel cancer patients like her when she was diagnosed.
“That’s what she meant when she would say she ‘rode on the wings of science’.”
And that’s why the family is so excited to reveal the two latest projects they are supporting.
The first, a study led by Dr Philip Dunne at Queen’s University Belfast, aims to catch bowel cancer earlier, by predicting a person’s risk of developing new polyps or growths that can develop into the disease.
And the second aims to design a vaccine to prevent bowel cancer in the first place.
Named the Bowelbabe Vaccine, the study led by Professor Andrew Godkin and Professor Awen Gallimore at Cardiff University, is looking at harnessing the power of the body’s immune system to fight diseased cells.
If successful, the team of scientists hope the jab will help inspire the next generation of vaccines to treat other cancer types, saving even more lives.
“To know a vaccine study is being named after her, would have had Deborah bouncing off the walls,” says dad, Alistair.
“Aside from when she found out she was being made a Dame, I can’t remember many times that Deborah was left speechless.
“But I suspect hitting the £20.5m mark and having a vaccine named in her honour might’ve done it.”
More than half of people diagnosed with bowel cancer in the UK will survive the disease – the second deadliest form of cancer.
But there is more to do, CRUK chief executive Michelle Mitchell, told The Sun, and the research funded in Dame Deborah’s name is vital in saving more lives.
“With the help of everyone, as well as the tireless efforts of Deborah’s family, her impact on the lives of people affected by cancer will be felt for years to come,” she added.
For Alistair and the whole family, the continued support for Deborah’s fund almost four years after her death, is nothing short of “incredible”.
“We are enormously proud of what has been achieved in her memory and we are forever grateful to all supporters, fundraisers, and the amazing staff and volunteers at CRUK,” he adds.
“What a way to remember a wonderful wife, mother, daughter and sister.
“Given the chance, all I want to say to Deborah is: ‘As a father, I still love and miss you and the amazing joy and energy you had for life.
“But what a wonderful legacy you have left behind, we are so proud of you.”
The signs of bowel cancer you need to know – remember BOWEL
1. B:Bleeding
There are several possible causes of bleeding from your bottom, of blood in your poo.
Bright red blood could come from swollen blood vessels, haemorrhoids or piles, in your back passage.
Dark red or black blood could come from your bowel or stomach.
Blood in your stools is one of the key signs of bowel cancer, so it’s important to mention it to your doctor so they can investigate.
2. O: Obvious change in loo habits
It’s important to tell your GP if you have noticed any changes in your bowel habits, that lasts three weeks or longer.
It’s especially important if you have also noticed signs of blood in your poo.
You might notice you need to go to the loo more often, you might have looser stools or feel like you’re not going enough or fully emptying your bowels.
Don’t be embarrassed, your GP will have heard a lot worse! Speak up and get it checked.
3. W: Weight loss
This is less common than the other symptoms, but an important one to be aware of. If you’ve lost weight and don’t really know why, it’s worth mentioning to your GP.
You may not feel like eating, feel sick, bloated and not hungry.
4. E: Extreme tiredness
Bowel cancer that causes bleeding can cause a lack of iron in the body – anaemia. If you develop anaemia you’re likely to feel tired and your skin might look pale.
5. L: Lump or pain
As with lots of other forms of cancer, a lump or pain can be a sign of bowel cancer.
It’s most likely you’ll notice a pain or lump in your stomach or back passage.
See your GP if it doesn’t go away, or if it affects how you eat or sleep
