December 11, 2021 11.00 am This story is over 27 months old

Lincoln woman on fifth pacemaker runs and walks 950 miles to support friend’s incurable cancer battle

Pushing the pain barrier for her best friend of 30 years

Emma Farley (left) is on her fifth pacemaker and suffers with asthma, but isn't letting that stop her run or walk 950 miles in support of her friend Laine Stevens' (right) incurable cancer.
By Local Democracy Reporter

The best friend of a Lincoln woman diagnosed with incurable blood cancer has walked and run 950 miles in a bid to fund research for a cure.

In June, Emma Farley, 47, challenged herself to run or walk at least 900 miles in solidarity with her friend of 30 years Laine Stevens, who was diagnosed with Myeloma in May 2021.

Emma suffers with asthma and is currently on her fifth pacemaker due to her own health conditions, but she was eager not to let that get in the way of her mammoth task.

Emma is a finance manager by day, and a determined runner too!

She took on the Lincoln 10K, York 10 Mile and Race for Life, as well as a variety of virtual races, and is now poised to take on the Worcester Santa Dash on Sunday, December 12.

Emma has also walked between 4 and 5 miles every single day for the past six months in aid of Myeloma UK, a charity dedicated to research and funding being finding a cure to the blood cancer disease.

At the time of reporting, Emma has raised £1,245 for Myeloma UK, and you can donate by visiting the JustGiving page here.

She always does it with a smile on her face.

Around 5,800 people are diagnosed with myeloma each year, and eight people die of the disease every single day, with it making up 2% of all new diagnosed cancer cases every year. There is currently no known cure for the disease, which occurs in the bone marrow.

Laine, 60, started showing symptoms of illness in September 2020, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic she was unable to get a face-to-face appointment with her GP.

Despite being prescribed painkillers, her situation only worsened and the pain was so excruciating that she was rushed into A&E, and by the time she was diagnosed on May 2, Laine had multiple spinal fractures and had shrunk by an inch.

Emma and Laine have been best friends for 30 years.

Speaking about her friend and her health troubles, finance manager Emma said: “I just wanted to do something positive for Laine and help raise awareness of myeloma.

“She is my family – we’re the best mates you could ever be. Seeing her suffer like that has been really hard.

“Because of my asthma and the fact that I totally rely on my pacemaker, there are days when it’s a challenge — but Laine’s cancer is much more of a challenge. I will continue these walking and running challenges and fundraising in any way I can.”