Terry Fox’s legacy continues 35 years after Marathon of Hope

Canadians continue to keep alive Terry Fox’s dream of beating cancer as events across the country mark the 35th anniversary of his Marathon of Hope. Runs and special events this month will continue Fox’s original goal of raising a dollar for every Canadian — one that has been surpassed many times over since his death in 1981.

“I don’t think Terry, before he passed away, could have ever imagined that we’d still be organizing fundraising events to continue his dream,” Fred Fox, Terry’s brother and member of the Terry Fox Foundation, told Yahoo Canada News. “Over $700 million has been raised in Terry’s name to fight cancer, and it has truly made a difference.”

The Terry Fox Foundation, through the Terry Fox Research Institute, now financially supports research into a variety of different cancers all across the country. Work supported by funds raised in Terry’s name includes the Pan-Canadian Lung Screening Project, the Strategic Training Initiative in Health Research projects and cancer treatment centres across Canada.

There is also the work that goes beyond that done by the foundation, Fox pointed out. That includes cancer-fighting work by researchers, fundraisers and volunteers around the country, as well as Fox memorials like the exhibit recently opened at the Canadian Museum of History in Gatineau, Que.

“They worked closely with our family in doing that,” Fox said of the museum and the exhibit, which runs until Jan. 24, 2016. “It was awesome to be there with so many Terry Fox supporters from right across Canada. It was a pretty emotional evening.”

Terry lost his right leg to cancer (osteogenic sarcoma) in 1977, at the age of 18. The suffering he saw in other cancer patients during his treatment inspired him to run across Canada to raise money to fight the disease. He began training back home in Port Coquitlam, B.C., in 1978.

“A lot of people don’t realize that before he even ran in St. John’s, he had run 5,000 kilometres in training to prepare,” Fred Fox said of his brother, who officially began the Marathon of Hope in St. John’s, N.L., on April 12, 1980. His support and national attention for the run grew as he made his way west, but Terry was forced to stop in Thunder Bay, Ont., that September because the cancer had returned in his lungs. He passed away the following June at the age of 22.

Advances in detection and treatment

His brother pointed to the advances that have been made in cancer detection and treatment in the 35 years of the foundation’s work. The survival rate for the cancer Terry had is now above 80 per cent, Fox said, and many people are able to avoid amputation. When Terry was diagnosed, he said, the survival rate was only 20 per cent. Fox pointed to similar improvements in outcomes for patients with melanoma, breast cancer and childhood leukemia.

“These outcomes are always going to get better,” Fox said — and while curing the disease is the ultimate goal of their work, the improvement in outcomes and quality of life for cancer patients is an important part of Terry’s legacy.

There will be events across Canada this fall to continue raising money for those goals. A Terry Fox statue will be unveiled in Richmond Hill, Ont., on Saturday, Fox said, and Canada’s largest run will be held on Confederation Bridge between Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick on Sept. 20. And there are events happening outside Canada as well, in countries including China, India and Cuba.

“Thirty-five years later, this [run] continues because of Canadians across this country of ours who are passionate about Terry — who have been touched by cancer in one way or another and want to continue what Terry did,” Fox said.