Charlotte Sweeney, passed away just before her 42^nd birthday when the cancer in her breast spread to her liver leaving her without hope of survival but with the question of “how long?”. After her death her friends and family wanted to provide more hope for other patients diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer decided to set up a new charity called Charlotte’s Vision.

The journey to setting up any charity is not easy therefore they sought the support of the National Breast Cancer Research Institute (NBCRI) based in University Hospital Galway. Close friend and chairperson of Charlotte’s Vision, Caroline Downey explained; “When Charlotte was diagnosed, she spoke to me about metastatic cancer, at the time I had no idea what it meant, to me breast cancer was breast cancer and we just needed to keep praying and hoping that she would get better. Unfortunately for Charlotte her breast cancer had spread to her liver, this is secondary cancer and currently there is no cure. It is about keeping the person alive for as long as possible. After she died, I approached NBCRI in the hope that we could create a charity that would specifically look at research for metastatic breast. Thankfully Prof. Michael Kearns and chairperson of NBCRI Caroline Loughnane were delighted with our initiative and allowed us to be part of their charity. This means that all our funds raised will go to metastatic research. Charlotte’s Vision is governed by NBCRI. This is a massive achievement to be part of such an amazing charity that already does such great work in the fight against breast cancer. We are so proud to be associated with NBCRI as well as having the opportunity to see the work Prof. Kearns and his team carry out on a daily basis.”