Everybody, everywhere, has been affected by cancer in some shape or form.
For West Ham United women’s forward Rachel Daly, the passing of her grandfather because of lung and prostate cancer has made raising awareness of the insidious disease so important to the England international.
It is why Daly is a proud ambassador of the MD Anderson Cancer Centre back in Houston, and it is why she is honoured to help support Breast Cancer Awareness Month by donning the special-edition, pink Breast Cancer Now shirt for West Ham during October.
A lot of friends of mine and relatives of mine have been affected by cancer so I think it’s something we should always be raising awareness of.
Rachel Daly
“I think it’s such an important cause that we need to raise awareness for continuously,” Daly said. “In Houston I’m an ambassador of the MD Anderson Cancer Centre. It’s a close foundation to my heart, it’s a horrible disease, and we just want to show awareness to fight it every day and help end cancer.
“I lost my grandfather to cancer. He had lung and prostate cancer, so I think for me when something touches your family like that it’s something that you take with you and it’s not something you want to just let go by the wayside.
“It’s something you want to support and a cause you always want to fight for. A lot of friends of mine and relatives of mine have been affected by cancer so I think it’s something we should always be raising awareness of.”
This month marks the second successive season that the Hammers have proudly worn pink shirts in support of Breast Cancer Now, and Daly is delighted to be a part of a club that looks to use their position to raise awareness of such issues.
Supporters are still able to purchase their limited-edition, pink Breast Cancer Now shirts in the West Ham United store online, and the loanee feels raising awareness must continue even after the month has ended.
Daly added: “I think what West Ham are doing is fantastic. Just even putting on the pink shirt every week in October; I think we’re the only club doing that, and it’s more than just putting a shirt on.
“It’s pink, so you know what it stands for, and being a part of a club that supports causes like this is again exactly why I wanted to be a part of it. It shouldn’t just be about the month of October. It's about raising awareness as much as we can every day to try help to end cancer.”
