Raffrey Farmer Dee Heron, a volunteer with the Moneyreagh & District Action Cancer Fundraising Group for over 30 years, is set to hold a ewe breeding lamb auction at the Saintfield Livestock Mart on Friday 22nd August at 7.30pm and is calling upon the local farming community for its support.
Dee Heron, an Action Cancer Skin Cancer Ambassador, is organising the auction along with his family, and hopes it will be as successful as previous years. Speaking about the upcoming auction, Dee said: “I am delighted to be organising another auction, with the support of auctioneer Geoffrey Murphy and Saintfield Mart. All money raised stays in Northern Ireland and goes towards the charity’s cancer support services including its skin cancer detection service. However, we can’t hold an auction without the livestock so I am appealing to any farmers, local or otherwise to consider donating to the event.”
Dee knows first-hand how important Action Cancer’s skin cancer detection service is. As someone who has spent most of his life working outdoors, he shares his experience to help raise awareness: “I have worked outdoors all my life and, when I was a young lad making hay at 10 years old, it was shirts off running around the field thinking it was great! We didn’t have any suncream on, there was no protection. I was diagnosed with skin cancer in 2008 after a mole on my spine looked suspicious. Thankfully it was caught early and I’m now cancer free. I would encourage anyone who works outdoors to ensure they protect themselves in the sun, keep covered up and wear sun cream. If you have any moles, keep a close eye on them and if there are any noticeable changes, contact Action Cancer.”
Mark Irwin-Watson, Community Fundraising Executive for Action Cancer, added: “The auction in 2023 raised over £15,000 so to reach £18,215 in 2024 was just remarkable. As always, we are truly indebted to Dee, staff at Saintfield Livestock Mart, and everyone who made donations, and bid on the animals. We could never have anticipated raising such a significant amount of money and are truly grateful to all involved.”
Northern Ireland has one of the highest incidences of skin cancer in the UK. Non-melanoma skin cancer is the most common cancer in Northern Ireland and melanoma, which is associated with moles, is the fifth. It is anticipated that the money raised from the livestock auction will enable Action Cancer to provide at least 150 appointments for early detection of skin cancer.
Action Cancer’s skin cancer detection service offers another pathway for people concerned about a new or changing skin lesion. Delivered by a highly qualified and experienced nursing specialist team, the service offers a two-stage process. Clients will first be assessed during a virtual appointment by a skin cancer specialist nurse. If a further assessment is needed, then a face-to-face appointment is offered on board an upcoming visit by the Big Bus (supported by SuperValu and Centra) which visits all five HSC Trust areas across Northern Ireland twice every four weeks, or at Action Cancer House in Belfast.
The Big Bus visits up to 200 locations throughout Northern Ireland each year including rural areas and areas of high deprivation where health inequalities are greatest. As well as the skin cancer detection service, breast cancer screening and health checks are also offered on board.
Action Cancer has been at the heart of cancer prevention, detection and support for people in Northern Ireland for the last 50 years. The services that Action Cancer provide are free to the user but come at a cost to the charity of £4 million every year. These services include an early detection breast screening clinic, therapeutic services for people living with a cancer diagnosis, as well as people supporting a loved one with a diagnosis and a range of health improvement services. These can be accessed from Action Cancer House in Belfast or from 14 regional locations and on board the Big Bus.
If you would like to get involved and support the auction by donating livestock, please contact Mark Irwin-Watson on 028 9080 3371 or email [email protected]