Dr Michael Mosley meets inspiring local man Patrick McIntosh
Patrick McIntosh, an inspiring triple cancer survivor from Smallfield, was invited to join Dr Michael Mosley onstage at the Hawth Theatre in Crawley last week.
Dr Michael Mosley is the man behind the popular 5:2 diet and is author of best selling books, The Fast Diet and the 8 Week Blood Sugar Diet. He spoke to Patrick in front of a packed audience at the Hawth about his latest epic fundraising challenge – his LifeCycle.
The audience and Dr Mosley heard how Patrick will begin his epic cycle ride by taking on a journey of over 7,000 miles to Japan to raise funds for St Catherine’s Hospice and raise awareness of the fight against cancer.
In early May Patrick will set off for the first leg of his journey from St Catherine’s Hospice in Malthouse Road, cycling towards Pease Pottage, which will be the site of a new, larger hospice building in years to come. From there it’s off to Twickenham Stadium before cycling across Europe and Russia, with the aim of reaching Tokyo in time for the opening game of the Rugby World Cup in September.
As part of the challenge, Patrick is raising money for St Catherine’s new hospice building. St Catherine’s new hospice building will have more ward beds and enhanced care facilities. This will allow the local charity to offer more care to more local people in the future. Patrick said, “It’s an honour to support St Catherine’s as part of my next big adventure. As a cancer survivor I know the importance of their vital care. And I want more people to be able to have hospice care in the future.
When you’re seriously ill you need all the support you can get. Having the support of St Catherine’s expert teams helps people to stay positive and live well for as long as they can. Those were things I found crucial to my own survival. Despite being told the most depressing news I tried not to let it get me down and believed that I could still make the most of life. Now I hope I’ll inspire others to do the same.”
After Dr Mosley’s show Patrick helped hospice supporters collect donations from generous Hawth audience members. Thanks to their generosity more than £500 was collected. Patrick said, “Raising £500 in such a short space of time was wonderful. I’d like to thank everyone who was at the Hawth for their support. It will make a big difference to local people when they need it most.”
After a well earned rest following the first leg of his journey, Patrick intends to set off to complete his challenge in early 2020. During this journey Patrick plans to cycle across North America and Iceland, and to visit Ireland, Scotland and Wales on his route back home. Patrick said, “The second leg of my journey is significant as it’s when St Catherine’s hopes to start the building work of their larger hospice. Knowing my cycle will help provide care to other people with cancer and other terminal illnesses in the future will help keep me motivated when the going gets tough.”
For the latest updates on Patrick’s amazing adventure follow him on Twitter at: @KMGfoundation Or to make a donation towards Patrick’s incredible challenge please visit: https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/PatrickMcIntoshLifeCycle
