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London Marathon: Islington man to run dressed as giant brain

Brain Tumour Research/Handout Jess Walkin stood in front of a blue background wearing a giant pink brain costumeBrain Tumour Research/Handout
Jess Walkin says he will be wearing the 5kg costume for the entire London Marathon race

A man is preparing to run this year's London Marathon dressed as a giant brain.

Jess Walklin and his partner Jessica Lowe, from Islington in north London, will be taking on the race together on 21 April.

However, Mr Walklin, 30, will be wearing the 5kg (11lb) costume for all 26.2 miles (42km).

The pair are raising money for the charity Brain Tumour Research in honour of Mr Walklin's mum Caroline Walklin.

Ms Walklin, 61, from Hampshire, was diagnosed with a grade 3 brain tumour in June 2022 after fainting and experiencing episodes of sickness.

Doctors originally thought she had long Covid until a scan revealed the rare and incurable cancerous tumour.

She has undergone surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy and is awaiting the results of her latest scan.

Brain Tumour Research/Handout Mr Walklin (left) with his mum Ms Walklin and family membersBrain Tumour Research/Handout
Mr Walklin says it has been a "hard reality" to accept there is no cure for his mum's cancer

Mr Walklin said: "Mum was a school pastoral care worker and retired only about a month before her diagnosis.

"All the way through her treatment, she's only cared about how it's affected everyone else.

"Knowing there's no cure is a hard reality and tough for us all to accept, especially when there are so many medicines and treatments for other cancers."

'Make a difference'

Mr Walklin and Ms Lowe raised additional money to have the unique pink costume made.

To raise funds, they cycled 150km (93 miles) on a tandem around Hyde Park on the hottest day of 2023, and hosted an auction and raffle night.

So far, their fundraising total exceeds £15,000.

Brain Tumour Research/Handout Ms Lowe and Mr Walklin wearing pink tshirts and sitting on a tandem bikeBrain Tumour Research/Handout
Mr Walklin said: "Jessica and I are determined to raise as much money as possible for the charity"

Recruitment director Mr Walklin says he knows there will be challenges in running with the costume on.

"I won't be able to see left or right and I will have arm holes to enable me to reach out to grab water bottles to drink inside the suit, so there's a bit of trepidation about that," he said.

He also said he expected it to "feel pretty lonely at times" because there will only be one eyehole to see out of.

But, he said, he and Ms Lowe were "determined" to raise as much money as possible for the charity.

"With sufficient investment in research it must be possible to make a difference," he said.

Brain Tumour Research funds research at dedicated centres in the UK as well as campaigning for more investment in research into brain tumours to speed up new treatments for patients.

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