London Marathon: St Albans man fundraising for dad’s hospital

Alessandro Lombardelli, 21, who lives in the Marshalswick area, is running the marathon to raise money for the Royal Marsden Hospital, which treated his dad for a rare form of cancer.

Alessandro’s dad, Marco Lombardelli, was diagnosed with a angiosarcoma in October 2016, which is a cancer in the linings of the blood vessels. Marco has been undergoing chemotherapy at the Royal Marsden Hospital Sarcoma Unit, and his most recent two scans showed that the cancer has not spread.

By running the marathon on Sunday, April 23, Alessandro initially hoped to raise £2,000 for the hospital, but has already raised more than £7,000.

Alessandro, who works as an assistant quantity surveyor and lives with his parents and two sisters, said: “My feeling towards the hospital is that they go beyond their moral call of duty.

Marco and Alessandro Lombardelli. (Image: Archant)

“The staff are extremely friendly and treat every patient as their own individual and not a statistic, which you do not always see.

“This hospital specialises in rare forms of cancer and with proper funding can succeed in doing extensive research to both understand and then provide the means of tackling them.

“I have chosen this charity because it gives people with a poor prognosis hope.”

To prepare for the marathon, Alessandro is doing weight training, long runs on Mondays and Saturdays and shorter, fast-paced runs on Wednesday or Thursday. He is also adopting the strict diet that Marco was put on as a result of his illness, and is taking vitamin supplements to ensure he is in optimal health.

He said: “My feeling towards the marathon is nervous but very excited. Not being a runner this challenge has not been an easy one but this has not swayed me.

“The support I have received through my JustGiving page has motivated me to not only finish but do so in the best time possible.”

To donate to Alessandro go to https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Alessandro-Lombardelli