Towie’s Dan Osborne and Ex Eastenders and Strictly star Jake Wood to play in celeb football match at Sheppey United FC in aid of Medway estate agent
11:48, 18 February 2024
updated: 11:51, 18 February 2024
A charity football match is taking place to raise funds to help an estate agent diagnosed with aggressive breast cancer at 28.
Celebrities including model and TV personality Christine McGuinness, The Only Way is Essex's Dan Osborne and Ex-EastEnders and Strictly Come Dancing star Jake Wood will take to the field at Holm Park, the home ground of Sheppey United this afternoon.
Money raised will go towards the ‘Help Save Leonie Botten’ fund which is fundraising to get the 28-year-old urgent treatment in America.
Leonie, from Wainscott near Strood, was referred to Medway Hospital after discovering a growth on her breast in May 2022 but was told it was nothing to worry about.
But by December it had grown and she was told she had stage-4 triple-negative breast cancer.
A GoFundMe page has been set up in her name which, at the time of writing, sits at more than £98,000.
The first treatment costs around £49,000 and Leonie has said once that has been raised her and the family will be making their way to America.
Any money that is raised but not needed for the treatment will go to charities Young Lives Vs Cancer and Make 2nds Count.
Kick-off in Minster-on-Sea is at 3pm with the game being hosted by charity match organisers Sellebrity Soccer with admission priced at £12. More details are available here.
Expecting a year of treatment and tests, Leonie remains optimistic about her future.
She told KentOnline: "I booked a doctor's appointment in January 2023 and they said they were concerned about it.
“I went back in for an ultrasound and they didn't like what they saw.
“The lady that did it was the same one who first looked at it and she said it had got bigger.
“They did a biopsy and then sent me for a mammogram. A couple of weeks later I got the confirmation that it was cancer.”
The news was broken to her by a letter which was sent before her in-person consultation.
She said: “My mum read it and understood what it meant so it's my mum who broke the news to me.
“It was traumatizing for both of us. They told us it was curable and it was scary, but I just thought okay I'm going to have a bit of a rubbish year with all the treatment.
“But then after the scans they realized it had spread and was incurable.
“Looking back, I should have asked more questions and probably got a second opinion, but when you're told by a professional you just think everything's fine.
“I'm very angry about it. I'm laughing but I'm very angry because it could have all been prevented.
“If they noticed it in June 2022 when it was a small lump it wouldn't have got to my organs.
“It would have just been a case of a lumpectomy or chemo.
“But once it spread they say there's not much they can do.”
Sarah Vaux, Interim Chief Nursing Officer at Medway NHS Foundation Trust, said: ‘’We are very sorry to hear about this case and have reached out to Ms Botton to discuss any concerns about her care.’’
Leonie is on her third round of chemotherapy and has been off work since getting the cancer diagnosis but, if and when the scans come back with positive results, she has been told she is welcome back anytime.
Her brothers Ash, Jay and Tim have also pledged to take on a series of physical challenges to help their sister the best they can.