Donna Goodby to run the Great Birmingham Run on her Dads birthday after his battle with leukaemia

Donna Goodby will take on the Great Birmingham 10K Run on her Dad’s birthday, after he battled leukaemia.

Donna’s father was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia in 1997 while on a family holiday, when Donna was just 6 years old.
She spoke to us about watching her dad’s battle with the illness, and how he was determined to beat it with the wish of walking his only daughter down the aisle.

“On the 1st August 1997 my family’s life changed forever while we were on our annual holiday in Cornwall. I was 6 years old at the time, but I still remember my Dad being poorly and spending lots of time in bed which wasn’t like him at all.
My next memory was of us visiting him at hospital in Truro, him wheeling a trolley full of drips and him telling my brothers and I that he had cancer. At this time, I had no idea what this word meant. Dad had Acute Myeloid Leukaemia and his survival rate was 30%.
From day one Dad was adamant that he would see his only daughter walk down the aisle. His resilience and determination was unfathomable and inspiring.”

Donna’s Dad was then treated at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham and underwent several rounds of chemotherapy for nearly a year.

“Dad then underwent three rounds of chemotherapy at the QE hospital in Birmingham and was meant to have a fourth trial round, but he wasn’t well enough to undergo this.
I remember seeing my healthy and active Dad of 39 years old become a frail and hairless man.
This felt like 5 minutes of my amazing childhood but the reality is that he was unwell for nine months!
Dad was told he would never work again and be unwell for most of his life.”

After several rounds of treatment, thankfully, Donna’s Dad has now gone on to make a full recovery, and achieved his dream of being there to walk his only daughter down the aisle on her wedding day.

“Fast forward to 2023 and I am so proud and lucky to say that against all odds Dad kicked cancers butt!
He not only got to walk me down the aisle but he is living his life to the fullest and is one of the most healthy and active almost 65 year olds you could know!
He is also a fantastic Grandad to all our children.”

Donna, who doesn’t have much running experience, will now take on the 10K in the Great Birmingham Run to raise funds for Cure Leukaemia in the hope of helping other families like hers.
The day will be made even more special, as it will also be her Dad’s 65^th birthday.

“I have little running experience and sadly during the pandemic the Great Birmingham 10k (6.2 miles) Run was cancelled. However, I still ran it solo.
I couldn’t resist the opportunity to do this run again.
What makes this day even more special is that it is on my Dad’s birthday!!!
I haven’t run properly since 2021 so this run will be a massive challenge. However, I am hoping to get running once the weather get’s better!”