Cancer teenager makes bucket list

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A 15-year-old cancer sufferer has thanked people around the world for helping to fulfil her 'bucket list' of things she wants to do before she dies.

Three days ago Alice Pyne, of Ulverston, Cumbria, created an internet blog called Alice's Bucket List in which she described how she has been fighting cancer for the last four years.

She revealed her latest hospital scans showed Hodgkin's lymphoma - a cancer of the white blood cells - was spreading through her body and that her mother had encouraged her to create a wishlist.

Her appeal led to a flood of offers as her webpage became an internet hit with Twitter followers, as it became one of the most talked about subjects worldwide.

Top of the schoolgirl's list was to 'make everyone sign up to be a bone marrow donor'.

Other wishes were to swim with sharks, to have a purple Apple iPad, to meet Take That and 'to have my hair done if they can do anything with it'.

In a fresh post today on her website - http://www.alicepyne.blogspot.com - she said most of her ambitions were now set to be achieved.

She wrote: "Now for my mega exciting news. I'm off to see Take That this weekend, can you believe it? I am so excited and really can't wait, I just hope that I don't get ill or something daft.

"I've lived in PJs for about a year so mum is going to town to buy some things to bring back for me to try."

She added: "It also looks like the other things I wished to do are being organised so thank you to everyone for that. I feel a very lucky girl.

"PS Anyone got hints for tweeting because we don't know what we're doing LOL."

A male bone marrow donor in his 20s was found as a match for Alice last year but doctors at Alder Hey Hospital in Liverpool said chemotherapy treatment had not been successful enough to allow the transplant to go ahead.

On Monday, Alice wrote: "Hi, I'm 15 years old and live with my parents and sister in Ulverston. I've been fighting cancer for almost 4 years and now I know that the cancer is gaining on me and it doesn't look like I'm going to win this one."

Cumbrian MPs have joined forces with the Anthony Nolan blood cancer charity to encourage people to join its stem cell register, in particular younger men.

Copeland's Jamie Reed, Tony Cunningham of Workington, John Woodcock of Barrow & Furness, Tim Farron who represents Westmorland and Lonsdale, Rory Stewart from Penrith and the Border, and Carlisle's John Stevenson have all joined the campaign.

In a joint statement they said: "Alice's bucket list has touched the hearts of millions of people in the space of a few days - we must make sure that empathy translates into more lives being saved.

"Alice is absolutely right when she says the best way to help is to sign up to be a donor. So please sign up with the Anthony Nolan blood cancer charity, whoever you are. Particularly consider volunteering if you are a man aged 18 to 30 - we need you to come forward. For some cancer patients this may be their only hope."