A WOMAN who raised £3,000 for a cancer charity in memory of her husband has pledged to continue fundraising to fight the disease.Emma Poulson, 32, from Needham Market, said she was enormously grateful to all those who supported her raising the money through the Race for Life 5k event at Chantry Park, Ipswich, on Sunday, which she completed within 25 minutes.

A WOMAN who raised £3,000 for a cancer charity in memory of her husband has pledged to continue fundraising to fight the disease.

Emma Poulson, 32, from Needham Market, said she was enormously grateful to all those who supported her raising the money through the Race for Life 5k event at Chantry Park, Ipswich, on Sunday, which she completed within 25 minutes.

She took on the challenge in memory of her husband Steven Poulson, 33, who died of cancer in March last year.

Now she intends to go on to the 10k Race for Life event at Ickworth House during October for Cancer Research and hopefully work up to take part in northern run half-marathon and the London Marathon as she strives to help charities working to make the disease history.

Mrs Poulson, of Pinecroft Way, said her husband had been her childhood sweetheart and the couple had two young sons, Harry and Charlie.

He was diagnosed with cancer on March 26 last year and died at Ipswich Hospital on May 4 a year ago.

After completing the run on Sunday, Mrs Poulson said: “I want to say a huge thank you to those who supported me, it was an emotional day.

“I choose the Race for Life in memory of Steve, he always said I could not run and it spurred me on to do this.

“As a partner of someone with cancer you feel very helpless and I just wanted to do something to alleviate that.

“Steve had cancer others are ill with it, so I want to give something back. The money goes into research and hopefully one day people will survive it and we will overcome this illness.

“I am planning more runs and will hopefully work up to half and full marathons, at the end of the day it's about making a difference.”

She added: “What I raised was a small amount, but with everyone pulling together we can change things for the better, that's what it is all about.”

Mrs Poulson ran the Ipswich race with her friend Becky Chaplin, also from Needham Market.

A spokesman for Cancer Research UK said: “Since it started in 1994, Race for Life has grown to become the UK's biggest women only fundraising event.

“All the money raised by our participants helps fund the crucial work of Cancer Research UK, the world's leading independent organisation dedicated to cancer research.

“So far, over two million women of all ages have run, walked or jogged to raise over £140 million in sponsorship for the charity.”