Two walkers are trekking 560 kilometres from Plymouth to Oldham in memory of a man who died of a rare kidney cancer, with a fundraising party planned at Springhead Football Club when they arrive.

Lee McAllister and Paul Ratcliffe set off on Thursday, August 13, on the 10-day walk for The Ricky Casey Trust. They are due to arrive on August 22, passing football grounds including Aston Villa and Forest Green Rovers along the way. Andy Revell is supporting them from a support vehicle.

The distance matches what would have been Ricky Casey's 56th birthday. Ricky died in 2019 aged 56 after living with renal medullary carcinoma (RMC), a rare and aggressive form of cancer that grows in the kidneys.

His wife Nicola Forshaw founded the Trust in 2020, making it the UK's first dedicated RMC charity. She said the walk is about taking the campaign "far and wide".

"We try to base whatever challenge we do around Ricky's birthday," she said. "Ricky would have been 56 this year, so it works out to 560 kilometres."

She said the team have trained hard and taken time off work for the challenge. "It's going to be gruelling, and it's going to be really hot, but it's all for one thing and that's awareness for the charity."

RMC is most common in males and people of African descent, and is most often seen in young people and teenagers. Those with sickle cell trait are at particular risk. Its main symptoms include blood in the urine, a lump in the abdomen, and fevers or night sweats. For those diagnosed with stage 1-3 RMC, the average survival rate is only 18 months, though more than 70 per cent of patients are only diagnosed at stage four.

Nicola said the family were refused treatment when Ricky was ill. "It was basically like, 'there's not enough evidence that this drug's going to work for you, so unfortunately there's nothing more we can do for you'. Basically: 'Just go home and die.'"

"Ricky was a firefighter, he was local hero and saving lives, but no one was prepared to do the same in return. Something kicked in me. I thought, 'I can't do this, this can't be all there is.' I can't stop fighting for Ricky, and I can't stop fighting for others."

The Trust works with patients, doctors and supporters around the world to raise awareness of RMC, fundraise for research and medical equipment, and fund treatment for patients who face long waiting times or difficulty accessing treatment.

Nicola said more people are getting in touch as diagnoses increase. "I was emailing America at about ten o'clock last night for someone in the UK. I shouldn't have to be doing that when the UK has so much access to drugs."

There have been successes. A GP training module has been rolled out across England, Scotland and Wales. One patient Nicola has supported since the start is coming up to five years of clear scans, and another couple have been supported for more than 18 months.

The Trust's biggest goal is to fund the UK's first clinical trial into RMC, which will cost around £500,000. Nearly half of that has been raised since 2020. The walk is aiming to raise £15,000 in total, and they are already more than three quarters of the way there.

"I'm hoping Lee and Paul keep well, and that they get home in one piece," Nicola said. "I just want to raise as much money as we can, and I'm dead, dead proud of them."

"I couldn't save Ricky. But I hope I can save someone else's life. If I can help just one person, if I can make a difference out of the devastating thing that we went through under Ricky's legacy and name, then it's a job we've done well."

A final fundraising party to celebrate the end of the walk will be held at Springhead Football Club at 4pm on August 22, featuring a live performance by the Two Connors, food, music and a late bar.