Younes and Hugo provide special day for brave youngsters

Younes Kaboul and Hugo Lloris welcomed a group of brave young people who are recovering from childhood brain tumours to White Hart Lane this week, as part of the Club’s continued support for Get to know cancer.

Get to know cancer aims to raise awareness of cancer symptoms and promote the importance of early diagnosis, with the message that cancer can be ‘treatable, even beatable’ if caught early.

This month, linking in to Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, Get to know cancer and the Club have been working with the charity, Headsmart, to increase awareness of the signs of brain tumours in children and help improve the chances early diagnosis and survival.

The newly-appointed Club captain and vice-captain took the young people on a private tour of the stadium, stopping off at the dressing rooms, pitch and dugout to answer questions about their footballing careers before hearing about each young person’s experience with cancer.

Adding a touch of magic to the afternoon, one young person in the group brought along a deck of cards and taught the players some of his favourite card tricks, which particularly impressed Younes.

Brain tumours are the most deadly form of cancer amongst children and young people in the UK, with 500 children and young people diagnosed each year. Early diagnosis can save lives and reduce long-term disabilities among survivors.

Athena Jamarani, 12, who has recently received treatment for a brain tumour, told Spurs TV what it meant for her to be at White Hart Lane: “I’m starting to enjoy football a lot and it was really interesting to meet the players and I was excited to see them. They showed us the changing rooms and we were on the pitch. I enjoyed it a lot and it was really fun!”

Speaking about the bravery of the children and young people he met, Younes said: “Hugo and I are very happy to be here today to meet these children.

“It’s important that we make people aware that cancer can affect anyone, so raising awareness of cancer and promoting early diagnosis through Get to know cancer is very important to the Club.

“We were both very impressed by one boy who was only 17 and doing some crazy stuff with his playing cards. To meet a young guy like him enjoying his life after spending a lot of time in a hospital bed shows that cancer is beatable if spotted early enough. All of the children were happy to see us but I think we were more happy to see them.”