STORY OF THE WEEK
The Prince of Wales backs bowel cancer campaign
T
he Prince of Wales has sent a video
message to TV presenter Lorraine Kelly, thanking her for supporting a campaign in memory of Dame Deborah James.
Prince William, who presented Deborah with her damehood just days before she passed away from bowel cancer last year at the age of 40, recorded the clip in recognition of Lorraine’s No Butts campaign, which aims to raise awareness of the disease.
In a video posted on Kensington Palace’s Twitter account and shown on Lorraine’s eponymous morning show, William, 40, says: “Just want to say a big thank you to you and your team for all you are doing to raise awareness around bowel cancer through your No Butts campaign.”
Referring to his visit to the James family home in May 2022 to give the cancer campaigner her honour, he adds: “As you know, I got to meet Dame Deborah so I know how important this was to her.
“Forty-six thousand people in the UK get diagnosed each year with bowel cancer and yet many of us don’t know the signs and symptoms, particularly in us men. So if you are watching, please take a second to listen and learn about the signs and symptoms. It could save your life.”
Lorraine relaunched her campaign for 2023 last week, getting Strictly Come Dancing judge Anton Du Beke to surprise Dame Deborah’s mother Heather with a dance in honour of her daughter.
Dame Deborah launched her Bowelbabe Fund to raise money for research when she knew she had exhausted every treatment option available. She died in June last year, having raised almost £7m for Cancer Research UK.
For the latest celebrity news, visit hellomagazine.com