Metro Games gold medallist presents cheque to Moorfields

Press contact: Beverley Bailey or John Carmichael
Tel: 020 7566 2424 or 020 7566 2628
Email: beverley.bailey@moorfields.nhs.uk or john.carmichael@moorfields.nhs.uk

Bronwyn Large, a 1,500m gold medallist in the 2007 Metro Games and a Friend of Moorfields, today presented a cheque to help further paediatric eye disease research, to Mally Scrutton, senior paediatric sister, at the Richard Desmond Children’s Eye Centre (RDCEC). Also present was Liz Fisher, from the Friends of Moorfields and Mark Hindmarsh, children’s services manager, RDCEC.

Bronwyn, from Stroud in Gloucestershire, was a Moorfields patient from early childhood. Through her exceptional athletic ability, she is now helping to fund further research at the RDCEC to ensure that new opportunities continue to be explored towards prevention and treatment for other young individuals.

She said: “I have never forgotten the warmth and friendliness of the staff at Moorfields both on and off the wards. I wanted to use my talent for running to benefit other young people as well as the hospital that has helped enable me to compete successfully in my sport.”

Mally Scrutton said: “Whether it is a £2.5m donation such as Richard Desmond’s or a slightly smaller one, it is only through the continuing efforts of individuals like Bronwyn and her fundraising for the Friends of Moorfields, that we can continue to offer children and young people with eye disease some of the newest and finest facilities in the world.”

Bronwyn’s next major challenge will be the Stockholm Marathon on 31 May this year.

Notes for editors

• Opened in 1805, Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is one of the world’s leading centres for ophthalmic treatment and teaching and research.
• It is the oldest and largest specialist eye hospital in the world, and became one of the UK’s first NHS Foundation Trusts in 2004.
• The Trust’s mission in creating the Richard Desmond Children’s Eye Centre is to create the environment and research infrastructure which when added to the current clinical services, will provide a global centre of excellence for children with eye problems.
• The Trust, together with research partner, the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, is one of only six specialist biomedical research centres (BMRCs) funded by the NHS National Institute for Health Research. Through the BMRC for Ophthalmology, we are embarking on an exciting programme of translational research in order to find cures for diseases that are currently untreatable, and to translate those cures from research into patient treatments.
• The entire range of eye diseases are treated at Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust - from cataract, corneal and retinal, to more complex conditions, and last year over 260,000 patients were treated.
• Anyone can support the Friends of Moorfields, either through fundraising or volunteering. Contact the Friends’ office on 020 7251 1240 or email friends@moorfields.nhs.uk.