Woman raises £40k for cancer by selling tablet

A university receptionist has raised £40,000 for breast cancer research by selling homemade tablet. Picture: Contributed

Fiona Edwards, a receptionist in the university’s School of Learning and Teaching within the College of Life Sciences, first began selling the sweets ten years ago.

And this year alone she raised a remarkable £6,200 which she presented today to Professor Alastair Thompson, an internationally-renowned researcher in breast cancer at Dundee University’s Medical School.

Mrs Edwards said: “This has been another big year for me and I must say a big thank you once again to all of the people who have bought - and hopefully enjoyed - the tablet.”

She explained: “The tablet is sold mainly at the Youth Football, my gym, and running events around Tayside - fellow runners are always good to me. I also go to Spanish night classes weekly at Grove Academy and beforehand I stand outside and sell to all the other night classes.”

And she revealed: “I still have regulars who pay me £1 a week not to eat the tablet. I also have my 80-year-old mother selling it weekly at her church.

“Many of my supporters like the idea that the money is raised locally and stays locally supporting local research especially when I say that it has funded a successful drugs trial in the past.”

Prof Thompson said: “We are hugely indebted to Fiona for the magnificent contribution she makes to supporting cancer research, and breast cancer in particular, including world leading research in Dundee establishing the value of the antidiabetes drug metformin against breast cancer.

He added: “I can also vouch for the quality of the tablet, which is delicious.”