Edinburgh boy smashes £1,000 target selling ice-pops in aid of rare childhood cancer

Caring Oscar Witherow has been selling ice pops to his school chums to raise cash for neuroblastoma research. Pictures is Oscar with his seven-year-old brother Caolan.

Caring Oscar Witherow, ten, was prompted to raise money for Neuroblastoma UK after a family friend died three years ago after battling the condition.

As well as raising money for the small charity, his main focus is to raise awareness of the condition itself in memory of his friend.

The Edinburgh Academy student surpassed his original target of raising £1,000 on Friday by selling ice-pops for 50p or three for £1 but hopes to continue to raise a total of £1,300 in the next couple of weeks before the summer holidays.

Oscar said: “It’s usually breast cancer charities, and larger charities that get most of the work and donations from people.

“Sadly, we had a family friend that passed away because of the condition and it’s been quite tough for her family.

“The families of people with neuroblastoma are affected because sometimes they have to take time out of their jobs to care for them and after a child is lost there is still the after effects to deal with.”

Neuroblastoma is an aggressive form of childhood cancer which affects around 100 children each year, most commonly under the age of five.

On average, two families a week find out that their child has neuroblastoma and the cause of the condition is unknown.

Oscar’s proud mum, Melissa, said: “Oscar has been very good at organising himself, he’s been planning this since  Christmas.

“We’ve had supermarkets like Morrisons and Asda donating ice-pops to sell, and the response has really been phenomenal.”

The money raised will go to the small charity which funds research projects to find a cure for the condition and to deliver new, effective and kinder treatments to children who are facing the disease.

Oscar added: “We went round my school classes and spoke to the children about the charity and we explained it all before they asked about it, because I knew that most people will not have heard of the condition.”

Melissa added: “We thought fundraising might be hit or miss with the weather, but we have still made money.

“Oscar thought ice-pops would be a great idea because it’s something that is a bit different, but it’s easy and most children can still eat and enjoy them even if they have an allergy.”

Katherine Mobey, Fundraising and Marketing Manager at Neuroblastoma UK, said: “We’ve been so impressed with Oscar’s entrepreneurial skills and we want to thank him and all the children at his school for raising such a magnificent sum of money for Neuroblastoma UK.

“The money raised by Oscar will help give these children and their families hope.

“He should be very proud of himself.”

[email protected]