Siblings take tough approach to fundraising

Two days after his 18th birthday in 2017, Mr Savident was diagnosed with stage three testicular cancer.

It resulted in him undergoing eight months of intensive chemotherapy in Southampton General Hospital and three operations to remove tumours from his lungs. Last September he had a tumour removed from his stomach.

‘During 2017 it’s fair to say I spent as much time in Southampton General Hospital staying on the Teenage Cancer Trust ward, than I did in my own home,’ he said. ‘We experienced first hand what this charity does for young adults with cancer and want to give something back.’

He said the TCT unit at Southampton did not feel like a hospital ward and this had had a positive affect on his mental health. The people who worked there were incredible.

‘Some people seemed to be almost living there as they were there every time I had to go back,’ he said.

Mr Savident, now 21, is a trainee architectural technician with JB Architecture, while his sister, 26, is an accountant with Carey.

Miss Savident is a keen runner who has completed a marathon. When she decided to do the Granite Man Triathlon, which involves a 1.2 mile swim, a 56 mile cycle ride and 13.1 mile half marathon run, she asked her brother to join her.

He did not wish to start at that level so considered the sprint alternative but during lockdown he went running and his fitness levels increased.

‘When Jess told me she was putting her name down for the event and there were only eight places left I said I’d go for it,’ said Mr Savident. ‘It got to the point where the sprint event that I was considering doing would not have been that great a challenge for me.’

Mr Savident and his sister are now in training for September. He plays football for Rovers and he said the socially distanced training which has just started also helps his fitness.

The pair set their fund raising target at £1,000 each a month ago. Mr Savident thought that might have been a bit high at the time.

‘But then it just went ballistic and we got just over £2,000 within the first two weeks,’ he said.

Miss Savident said she too could not speak highly enough of the trust and its unit at Southampton General Hospital.

‘The communal room has a sofa, tables, and X-Box, DVDs and books and it’s more like a youth club,’ she said.

‘That makes things so much better for the families of patients as well.’

. The pair will be updating their training progress on Instagram at @savs_tri_training

. Donations can be made at www.justgiving.com/fundraising/savident