Youngsters party to raise funds for Trust (From Penarth Times)

Youngsters party to raise funds for Trust

TEENAGERS from Penarth and Dinas Powys clubbed together to help raise money for a pioneering teenage cancer unit in Cardiff.

Members of the Catholic Youth Forum of St Mary's Church, Dinas Powys, and St Joseph's, Penarth, decided they wanted to do something for teenagers like themselves. They held a disco in July in aid of the Teenage Cancer Trust, celebrating teenage life.

More than 60 teenagers attended and the night was a great success. From ticket sales and donations they managed to raise 342 for the charity.

A representative of the Trust was invited to St Mary's to receive the cheque - and he assured the young fundraisers that every penny would go towards their local unit and specifically towards one of the ten beds it will provide.

Each day in the UK six teenagers are diagnosed with cancer. The Teenage Cancer Trust focuses on the needs of teenagers and young adults with cancer, leukaemia, Hodgkin's and related diseases by providing specialist teenage units in NHS hospitals.

The Trust has recently been given the go-ahead to build a new unit in Cardiff situated at The University Hospital of Wales.

The unit, known as The Skypad will be built on stilts between the adult and the paediatric oncology centres.

It will be the first unit in Wales built specifically for teenagers with cancer.

This ambitious project is costing a minimum of 1.8 million to complete and as there is no financial support from the government, this amount must be raised through other means.

To find out more and to see if you can help, visit the website at www.teenagecancertrust.org