Previously, Dr Fisher-Black raised over £10,000 for lung cancer charities with two fellow doctors where in 2020 they would cycle over 200 miles in one day to raise money for Hywel Dda Health Board. The main aim being to increase awareness of the illness and its symptoms alongside the crucial funding for hospitals.
The Tour de Hywel Dda, where each hospital was visited by Dr Gareth Collier MBE, Dr Mark Andrews and Dr Fisher-Black fundraised successfully for essential diagnostic equipment but is an area that constantly relies on external funding to afford equipment that often costs outside of the NHS purse strings.
Speaking about his latest challenge Dr Fisher-Black said:
“As a lung cancer Consultant, I unfortunately see first-hand the effect this diagnosis can have on patients and their families. The key to good outcomes is early diagnosis, which is very challenging, given patients rarely have symptoms in early-stage disease.
“As a service, we are striving to raise awareness and also increase our ability to diagnose early. Charitable funds have recently helped us purchase new bronchoscopy equipment that will allow us to biopsy even smaller and more distant tumours and hopefully achieve earlier diagnosis and curative treatment for more patients. This money really does make a huge difference.
“The funds I raise will go to the charity to help raise awareness further, achieve earlier diagnoses and support patients throughout their lung cancer journey. As one of the lung cancer doctors in the health board I’ve got first-hand experience of how important this all can be to patients.”
“The support of our fundraisers enables us to provide services over and above what the NHS can provide in the three counties of Hywel Dda and we are extremely grateful for every donation we receive.”
Donate to Jonathan’s fundraiser here: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jonathan-Fisher-Black
For more details about the charity and how you can help support local NHS patients and staff, go to www.hywelddahealthcharities.org.uk
[Lead image: Jonathan Fisher-Black Just Giving]
