Hundreds abseil 160ft down St Thomas' for charity

Last weekend saw hundreds of patients, supporters and staff members throw themselves off the roof of St Thomas’ hospital in aid of charity.

The annual abseil down St Thomas’ raises money for 3 of the charities that assist the Trust in delivering care to patients and supporting staff beyond what the NHS can provide.

This year’s abseil has so far raised £210,000, a figure expected to continue to rise over the coming weeks. Since launching in 2015, over 3000 people have taken part in the 160ft drop down the iconic St Thomas’ building and raised over £2m for the 3 supporting charities: Guy’s Cancer Charity, Evelina London Children’s Charity and Guy’s and St Thomas’ Charity.

Two people taking part in the abseil last Friday were Eddie and his girlfriend Meg. Eddie, 23, was diagnosed with testicular cancer earlier this year after discovering a lump in late February. Following treatment under the care of Guy’s Cancer Centre, Eddie is now recovering and the couple raised over £3,000 for Guy’s Cancer Charity with last week’s abseil.

Eddie said: “I wanted to give something back to Guy’s after everything they did for me. The care I received was amazing and I always felt like I knew what was happening and why.”

Another patient turned fundraiser who took part was Lacey Ward, 18, who has been a patient with Evelina London Children’s Hospital for over 5 years.

Lacey was diagnosed with miserable malalignment syndrome (MMS) at Evelina London when she was 14, ultimately undergoing 3 surgeries at the hospital to correct the rare knee condition.

Lacey said: “The care from Evelina is amazing. They got me through my diagnosis when I thought nobody was going to help me.”

Speaking about the abseil itself, Lacey said: “The views were absolutely amazing! Afterwards I felt very proud of myself as I pushed through my fear and completed it. It was very high and I didn’t think I could do it but I’m so glad I did.”

For those who missed a chance to take part in the abseil, there are a range of other events and challenges happening across the charity hospital brands to get involved in. To find out more click one of the links below:

• Guy’s & St Thomas’ Charity
• Evelina London Children’s Charity
• The Brompton Fountain
• Royal Brompton & Harefield Hospitals Charity
• Guy’s Cancer Charity