Prince William praises £20m milestone for Dame Deborah James fund

A cancer research fund set up by Dame Deborah James has reached an "incredible milestone" after it hit the £20m mark, the Prince of Wales says. The Bowelbabe Fund, set up in May 2022 shortly before Dame Deborah died of bowel cancer, has reached the milestone in less than four years, having initially aimed to raise £250,000. In a message on Instagram, Prince William praised the "amazing legacy" of Dame Deborah, from Woking, Surrey, writing: "Deborah is in our thoughts today, as are all those who loved her." Dame Deborah's mother, Heather James, added: "Deborah would be absolutely over the moon if she were here today to see this." Heather James said: "She was so passionate about supporting research that would help give more people affected by cancer more time with their loved ones." Speaking to BBC Breakfast, Dame Deborah's father Alistair James said: "She set this up in the last few weeks of her life and if she knew we had managed £20.5m even Deborah with her energy probably wouldn't believe what happened." A spokesperson for Cancer Research UK, which benefits from the fund, said the money raised had been used to support 16 research projects, including a "Bowelbabe vaccine" aimed at