Terminally ill teenager posts 'final thumbs up' as he reaches £1m target

A teenager with terminal cancer posted a ‘final thumbs up’ message to his followers saying life had been very good, which saw his fundraising efforts for others with cancer tip £1 million.

Stephen Sutton set up a bucket list of things to do to inspire others and aimed to raise £10,000 after he was told his cancer was incurable in 2012.  But the 19-year-old inspired the public and celebrities with his enthusiasm for life and exceeded his fundraising target to reach £1 million.  At one point donations were being made at a rate of £1,000 a minute.

After posting a ‘final thumbs up’ message, thanking family and friends and saying he was ‘nearing the end’, donations began flooding in – attracting the attention of the public and celebrities.

The teenager later tweeted from his hospital bed after he heard his campaign had reached £1million.  Mr Sutton, from Burntwood, Staffordshire, was diagnosed with colorectal cancer at the age of 15 but this spread to other parts of his body.  He created a bucket-list of 46 things he wanted to do before he died, setting up a charity fundraising website and a blog on Facebook in January last year to keep people up to date with his progress.

His ‘bucket list’ included hugging an animal bigger than himself, which saw him embrace an elephant at West Midlands Safari Park. He also played the drums in front of 90,000 people at last year’s at last year's Bayern Munich v Borussia Dortmund Champions League final at Wembley.

Mr Sutton set an initial fund-raising target of £10,000 for the Teenage Cancer Trust but as this was exceeded he set a new aim to raise £1 million, which he achieved on Wednesday morning.

On Tuesday he was rushed to hospital and posted a "final thumbs up" picture on his Facebook page.  He wrote: "I've done well to blag things as well as I have up till now, but unfortunately I think this is just one hurdle too far.  It's a shame the end has come so suddenly- there's so many people I haven't got round to properly thank or say goodbye too. Apologies for that.

He said that future messages would probably be posted from a family member, and added: "I will continue fighting for as long as I can, and whatever happens next I want you all to know I am currently in a good place mentally and at ease with the situation. That's it from me. But life has been good. Very good. Thank you to my mum and the rest of my family for everything. Thank you to my friends for being amazing. Thank you to my medical team for the hard work and effort they've continually they've put towards me. And thank you everyone else for sharing this wonderful journey with me.”

Mr Sutton’s story attracted the attention of celebrities including Jason Manford, John Bishop and Piers Morgan who publicised his fundraising efforts on Twitter.

Jimmy Carr, the comedian recorded a message of support after Mr Sutton met him - something that was at number 36 on his bucket list.

The teenager achieved his target at 11.13am on Wednesday and tweeted shortly afterwards: “But seriously... Wow. Just wow. Thank you all so much "

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/10782822/Terminally-ill-teenager-posts-final-thumbs-up-as-he-reaches-1m-target.html

People never cease to amaze me, what a lovely guy x

This made me cry when I saw it on the news.

A very brave young man x

Wife told me about this earlier, poor young lad , very brave indeed and such an inspiration and what a huge achievement in raising so much for great causes.

Rock on mate, what a great peson.

Look at that photo, you can tell he's so serene -- probably because he knows he made such a difference.

         

Ben_Reilly wrote:Look at that photo, you can tell he's so serene -- probably because he knows he made such a difference.

         

Doesn't he! He made a difference and all those who helped him to do so did too   x

A terminally-ill teenager has smashed all records on fundraising website JustGiving, as donations to his charity appeal surged past £2.5m.

Stephen Sutton originally set out to raise £10,000 for the Teenage Cancer Trust but soon upped his target to £1m, as celebrities including Jason Manford, Stephen Fry and Russell Brand gave their support.

By Saturday morning the 19-year-old had raised £2.5m, with more than 102,000 people pledging their support.

Writing on his Facebook page, on which he published a bucket list of things he wants to do before he dies, Stephen said: "I've always been a firm believer that people are 'good' and to see people come together in the way they have is incredibly touching and heart-warming. Thank you from me and thank you from every young cancer patient who will benefit invaluably from the money raised."

http://news.sky.com/story/1249657/stephen-suttons-teen-cancer-appeal-tops-2-5m



WOW! Great news

A terminally-ill teenager who has raised more than £3.1m for charity has been discharged from hospital after a dramatic improvement in his condition.

Stephen Sutton, 19, posted on his Facebook page that he had been allowed to leave hospital after a "remarkable recovery".

He wrote: "I then also have some more great news... I've been discharged from hospital!  After being at a point where it seemed like I'd never make it out it feels so awesome to be able to put that.  The recovery I've undergone recently is quite remarkable. It has been difficult, there is an emotional trauma attached to nearly dying (a few times) that will take a while to get used to, but ultimately I now feel even more fortunate to just be here and the experience serves as a potent reminder to go out there and live life as freely and as positively as possible."

Earlier this week, the teenager recounted how his breathing "dramatically improved" after he "coughed up a tumour" while in hospital.

He will now recover at home before potentially starting a trial drug treatment.

He wrote: "Physically my body has been through a lot recently so naturally I will need some time to recover.   I have an appointment with the professor in about two weeks time and he's mentioned that if I'm healthy enough there is a trial drug treatment I am eligible for that I could potentially try.  It would be a 5th different chemotherapy regime for me, with previous others having limited effect, so we will need to seriously discuss the efficacy of me trying it but to even be talking about a few weeks time and having options is a great feeling."

Mr Sutton has now raised more than £3.1m for the Teenage Cancer Trust and has more than 540,000 likes on his Facebook page, where he published a bucket list of things he wanted to achieve before he dies.

He was diagnosed with incurable colorectal cancer at the age of 15 and has released a 10-minute YouTube video called When Life Gives You Cancer, featuring interviews with his mum, his school teachers and his best friend.

http://news.sky.com/story/1254220/cancer-fundraiser-stephen-sutton-leaves-hospital

...and the news just keeps getting better!  Wouldn't it be amazing if the trial works  

Isnt that fantastic news!

Just bringing this thread back up to the top for a final thumbs up. Its Stephen Suttons funeral tomorrow, the fund has now reached 4 million pounds. What a legacy to leave! I was in Lichfield Town today, its actually more a celebratory atmosphere than a sad one, which is I'm sure how he would have wanted it.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2642996/Stephen-Sutton-vigil-held-Lichfield-cathedral-tonight.html

harvesmom wrote:Just bringing this thread back up to the top for a final thumbs up. Its Stephen Suttons funeral tomorrow, the fund has now reached 4 million pounds. What a legacy to leave! I was in Lichfield Town today, its actually more a celebratory atmosphere than a sad one, which is I'm sure how he would have wanted it.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2642996/Stephen-Sutton-vigil-held-Lichfield-cathedral-tonight.html

Fantastic guy, what an achievement. A  from me to Stephen, a truly brave and selfless young man x