Southampton pub The Two Brothers raises nearly £10k for Pancreatic Cancer UK

Chris Chapman, 57, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer three days before Christmas last year after suffering from a painful stomach ache.

Rather than dwell on his diagnosis, Chris, a regular at The Two Brothers pub for over 25 years and one of the pub's chefs, wanted to host a fundraiser for Pancreatic Cancer UK.

READ MORE: Southampton pub pledges to raise £5k for charity after chef is diagnosed with pancreatic cancer

Generous donors, attendees, and pub staff gave their time and money to the jam-packed fundraiser at the Chartwell Green pub that raised £9,068.

Chris said: "I am blown away by it all. It started off with £150 so it’s just unreal.

"If it makes people more aware of Pancreatic Cancer, even better. I want to thank everyone.

"Currently, there is no screening process available, so hopefully the money we raised will go towards that."

Chris' wife Rachel said: "Pancreatic Cancer is known as the silent killer. Chris had a stomach ache in November and found out he had cancer on December 22. 

"As the tests started, we Googled symptoms and worked it out, but we never said it out loud.

"We know it’s not going to save Chris, but it’s going to save thousands of people in the future. 

"We have been overwhelmed by the people who have donated their time, and just donated.

"We know it’s not going to change our situation but it may change someone else’s."

Rachel and Chris approached pub manager Kelly Rice four weeks ago to ask about hosting a fundraiser in aid of Pancreatic Cancer UK.

Chris and Rachel Chapman with pub manager Kelly Rice (left) outside The Two Brothers

Three weeks later, neither of them expected to raise nearly £10,000 during the event on March 6.

Rachel said: "We didn’t expect it to get this big. How we managed to do it all in two weeks and three days amazes me now.

"Over a thousand people were in and out during the day, it was chock-a-block.

"For us, it was 50 per cent raising awareness and 50 per cent raising money."

Future fundraisers for the charity are in the pipeline as it has been named as the pub's chosen charity of the year.

Manager Kelly said: "We will be doing fundraisers for Pancreatic Cancer UK all year and we will not stop. We have still got more raffle and auction prizes.

"People said it happened to their family members, so the fundraiser brought people together and it is a support network. It was touching to see everyone come together.

"I am grateful we held the fundraiser here and we will continue to raise awareness and funds."

For more information about the disease, visit the Pancreatic Cancer UK website.