About Against Breast Cancer UK
Every October we change all our products and branding to pink to raise much needed awareness for the amazing charity Against Breast Cancer UK, along with a charitable donation of £10,000, which goes towards groundbreaking research, development and care.
Founders of Against Breast Cancer UK
Founders Dr Anthony Leathem and his wife Pat decided
to setup Against Breast Cancer in 1993. At the time they were responding to the
urgent need to improve survival from secondary spread, the main cause of breast
cancer related deaths.
Dr Anthony Leathem, a pathologist has seen first hand
and become increasingly upset at the number of women tragically dying from
breast cancer.
His decision to act would change both their lives
forever.
Dr Anthony Leathem, co-founder
Anthony was a pathologist at the Middlesex Hospital
when, upset by the number of post mortems he carried out each day on young
women dying from breast cancer, he started carrying out research into breast
cancer survival.
With no funding for his research, he took matters into
his own hands and stood outside Oxford Circus underground station in his white
lab coat rattling a tin to raise money for his own research, capturing the
attention of the press and the public imagination.
After setting up the charity together with his wife
Pat in 1993, Tony continued as a researcher at University College London until
retirement in 2009.
His main achievements included identifying a chemical difference between aggressive and non-aggressive breast cancer cells and playing a pivotal role in the charity’s DietCompLyf study into the diet and lifestyle of breast cancer patients.
Tony continued after that time as an advisor to his former research group and a trustee to the charity.
Whilst he has since stepped back from these roles, his vision and enthusiasm for the cause remains a driving force behind the charity today.
Mrs Patricia Leathem, co-founder
Patricia was a breast cancer theatre nurse at Oxford’s Churchill Hospital when Tony began his research into breast cancer. She took it upon herself to fundraise, writing to schools, chambers or commerce and women’s organisations. Pat involved her friends in collection days outside supermarkets and then planted her entire allotment with sweet peas and sold them at her front door.
Along with Tony, Pat co-founded Against Breast Cancer in 1993, with the couple dipping into their joint salaries to set up a charity fund. Pat remained actively involved for 19 years later.
In 1998 she was votes Oxfordshire Women of the year and after her retirement in 2012, Pat continued to serve as a trustee for serval years.
Today Pat remains one of the Against Breast Cancer’s biggest supporters and takes great pleasure in seeing how far the charity has come.