THE final fundraiser of a whirlwind year for a family at the centre of a campaign which has caught a community’s imagination provided a chance for reflection.

Glitz & Glamour was the last fundraiser of 2018 in aid of Gemma Kent, a mother-of-three from Tadley who was diagnosed with terminal liver and pancreatic cancer in May this year, at the age of 41.

The black-tie event, held at Bishopswood Golf Course, was a chance for Gemma, with her family and friends to enjoy an evening of food, dancing, games and more, but also to reflect on the past six months.

The Hope for Gemma campaign was set up to provide funding to pay for life-extending treatment in Istanbul, which takes up to six months, to cover getting to and staying in Turkey and follow-up care.

It took nearly six months for Gemma to get a diagnosis after being told by her GP, without any investigations or scans, that the pain she was experiencing was not related to her pancreas or liver.

A whirlwind of fundraising followed and it was revealed at the event the appeal has so far raised £82,000.

The treatment is a mixture of chemo with a diet, oxygenation of the blood and extreme heat.

Gemma, now 42, had her last chemo treatment in Istanbul at the end of September but on her return, she was hospitalised due to a torn oesophagus which led to internal bleeding.

After a number of blood and platelet transfusions, she recovered but was not in a position to travel back and forth to Istanbul every 10 days for stints of treatment.

However, while Gemma was in Basingstoke hospital, staff carried out a CT scan which showed the tumour in her pancreas had shrunk from 9.5cm in size to 4.3cm and the secondary tumours in her liver have also shown improvement.

As a result, Gemma is to be offered the same chemo treatment in the UK, but the hospital cannot support the complementary therapies.

Which means the fundraising now relates to sourcing the extra facilities and elements provided in Turkey, as to treat Gemma in the UK.

Thus far, £43,000 has been spent on treatments, flights and accommodation, leaving available funds should Gemma need to revert to Turkey in the future.

In the longer term, it was also revealed at the event the family is hoping to create or link up with a charity where they can offer the types of therapies Gemma benefitted from in Istanbul to help other recovering cancer patients.

More fundraising events are planned for 2019.

For more information, go to facebook.com/HopeForGemma