TWO sisters will take to the streets of London on Sunday (20) to raise money for a charity that supported their father after he was diagnosed with a rare form of eye cancer.

Alice Fleming, 27, and Louisa, 28, will take part in the Hackney Half Marathon after their property consultant father Andrew, who lives in All Cannings, near Devizes was found to be suffering from ocular melanoma.

The sisters will be joined by seven friends on the run to raise cash for OcuMel UK which has supported Mr Fleming since his diagnosis last April. Problems were spotted during a eye examination and he was found to have the rare incurable cancer.

Mr Fleming was referred to a specialist hospital in Liverpool and had to have his right eye removed. The 60-year-old now has to have MRI scans every six-months as in 50 per cent of cases the cancer mutates elsewhere in the body, most commonly the liver.

The runners have already raised more than £10,000 for OcuMel UK which helps patients and their families by providing accurate, up-to-date information and emotional support via its website, helpline and online forums.

Alice Fleming, who now lives in Stockwell, London, said: “The charity has given my father so much support and help since his diagnoses, which has been invaluable to us as a family. We cannot thank them enough.

“The charity relies on donations to survive and we want to help them as much as we can so they can continue to support people with this rare form of cancer.

“People have been really generous and we have already raised more than £10,000 via our Virgin Giving page and we are hoping to get up to £12,000 if we can.”

Mr Fleming, said: “I am very proud of my daughters and their friends for this fantastic effort. OcuMel UK have been a tower of strength to me and it is so important people support them in any way they can.

“I only went for the eye test as I was seeing flashing lights. I am so glad I went to the opticians as the cancer would not have been detected and I wouldn’t have received the treatment I needed.”

Jo Gumbs, National Director for OcuMel UK, said: “We are so grateful to Alice, Louisa and their friends, they’ve raised an incredible amount of money so far. We have so many ways in which we can help people with ocular melanoma, and so donations such as these really do make a real difference to what we can achieve.

"At a minimum, we feel people should receive support and accurate information when faced with this rare cancer, but people need so much more. We need to keep pushing to bring the care these patients receive, in line with the care people with more common cancers experience.

“Once again, I can’t stress enough how important it is for people to have regular eye tests. We hear from so many people who have had their cancer diagnosed as a result of having an eye examination, and in some cases, this has saved or prolonged their lives.”

Donations can be made at uk.virginmoneygiving.com/Team/HackneyHalfTeam?utm_source=email&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=fundraiser&utm_term=socialshare&utm_content=fundriasingpage