Deborah James ‘would have been so thrilled’ fund is helping cancer treatment
The fund she set up before her death donated £1 million to the charity of the hospital which treated her before she died in 2022.
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Your support makes all the difference.Dame Deborah James’s father has said she would be “thrilled” her Bowelbabe campaign has helped fund the installation of a cutting edge cancer treatment machine at her former hospital.
A new interventional radiology machine has been set up at The Royal Marsden, where Dame Deborah received cancer treatment before her death aged 40 in June 2022, five years after she was diagnosed with bowel cancer.
The fund she set up before her death donated £1 million to the hospital’s charity, which funded the new machine and a refurbishment of the interventional radiology suite at the hospital, which will be named after Dame Deborah.
Appearing on BBC Breakfast on Sunday, Dame Deborah’s father Alastair James said: “I think Deborah would have been so thrilled about the impact that’s been made, that people still remember it.”
He added that he feels his daughter “loved and respected” the team at The Royal Marsden who supported her for five years and that this donation was partly to “say a big thank you on Deborah’s behalf”.
The podcast host had interventional radiology as part of her treatment at the hospital, which uses imaging techniques to diagnose and treat cancer in a minimally invasive way and is often used as an alternative to surgery.
Dame Deborah’s father said there is a “hole” in their lives since her death but they “remember her with love and pride and enjoyment”.
“We also all remember, like so many people, if you can, you’ve got to get out and live your life for the full.
“Live every day, make the most of it, and make memories.”
I think Deborah would have been so thrilled about the impact that's been made,
He added that her family do experience periods of sadness, but they feel “honoured” and “lucky” to be able to talk about their daughter to others.
“And if that helps, that carries the move forward, that’s brilliant”, he said.
In her final weeks, Dame Deborah – a presenter of the BBC podcast You, Me And The Big C – continued her campaigning by announcing the profits of her clothing line and royalties from her book would go towards the fund.
She was honoured with a damehood for her “tireless” work improving awareness of the disease, which was personally conferred by the Prince of Wales during a surprise visit to her parents’ house.
Her father agreed his daughter lived her life to the fullest, adding: “Deborah had a commitment to do what she did. And with the help of so many other people, the medical team made it possible for her to do it, the family, the media supported her in her campaign, because nobody knew who she was when she started… and this impact was incredible.”