THE family and friends of a Rishton man diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour are raising money to help others.

Ian Walsh, who lives in Commercial Street with his partner Glenda Carter and daughter Toni, 20, has just endured a gruelling course of radiotherapy, which has seen him go into remission.

MORE TOP STORIES:

Now, as the 53-year-old prepares himself for chemotherapy, a group of kind-hearted residents in the Hyndburn town are set to raise vital funding for Brain Tumour Research.

Glenda, 48, said: “Cancer Research UK can only donate one per cent of its funds towards brain cancer, so we are specifically raising money for that type of cancer.

“Radiotherapy keeps working for three or four weeks after the treatment finishes but one person can only have six weeks of treatment in their entire lifetime, so we feel it is important to find out more about it.”

Mr Walsh was a firefighter in Liverpool for 30 years before he moved to Rishton a decade ago. He met Glenda while singing karaoke on a night out and the pair became good friends before eventually became romantically involved.

The pair are well known throughout Rishton for their tenure as landlord and landlady of The Roebuck Inn.

A ‘wear a hat day’ has already been held, raising £600, while local man Dave Lees has agreed to make his beer festival in June a joint fundraiser for Brain Tumour Research.

And Paul Bradley and Johnny Burrows will get in the saddle by cycling from the Liver buildings in Liverpool, Ian’s hometown, back to Rishton – a total of 70 miles, on Saturday, June 20.

Sponsor forms can be found in the Conservative Club, in Cliff Street, and can be requested by calling Mr Bradley on 078726228487.

A fund-raising event will also be held at the Conservative Club on June 20, when there will be entertainment, a raffle and a tombola.

Established in 2008, Brain Tumour Research was launched with the aim of giving patients the same chances of survival as those with other types of cancer.

Currently, just four in 10 people diagnosed with a brain tumour will survive a year, while just 19 per cent will live for five.

In contrast, 78 per cent of people diagnosed with breast cancer will survive for at least a decade.

The average survival rates across all types of cancer is about 50 per cent.

To donate to the residents’ cause online, visit www.justgiving.com/team-Ian-Walsh.

Prizes for the raffle and tombola in June are in need and can be donated to the good cause by calling Glenda on 07593779594.