Charity netball tournament raised funds to stamp out the late detection of breast cancer in young people

We recently supported the Lawn Netball Club’s junior tournament to help raise funds for breast cancer awareness charity, CoppaFeel! We sponsored a Court at the tournament, which helped ensure that all funds raised on the day go to the charity.

CoppaFeel! was founded by Kris Hallenga, after she was diagnosed with secondary breast cancer at the age of 23, having initially been dismissed by doctors due to her young age. She passed away on 6^th May 2024. Kris founded Coppafeel! to educate young people on checking their chests, knowing their normal and advocating for their health. Coppafeel’s mission remains to ensure all breast cancers in young people are diagnosed early and accurately.

Gemma Duff, a member of Lawn Netball Club, started organising the tournaments after she was diagnosed with secondary/incurable breast cancer in 2019 at the age of 36. Gemma had no risk factors and no family history and she was turned away initially for being “too young”. By the time her breast cancer was diagnosed it had already spread to her bones and was incurable.

“These tournaments aim to raise funds to help CoppaFeel! continue to do its amazing work encouraging young people to check their bodies, to know their normal, to advocate for their health and get any changes checked; and to raise awareness in young people within our community of the importance of knowing their bodies.”

The tournament saw enthusiastic participation from 19 teams aged 11-14 from Swindon and Wiltshire and raised £2,154.80 for the charity.