A complex care worker for children who has been living with a rare cancer condition for the past 17 years will chuck herself out of a plane at 12,000ft in a charity skydive this September

Kelly Ayers, 31, was diagnosed with Gorlin Goltz syndrome when she was 14-years-old.

Gorlin syndrome is a rare, hereditary condition in which many people develop a type of skin cancer called basal cell cancer of the skin. It affects about 1 in 31,000 people, although the true figure may be higher as mild cases can go unrecognised, and is caused by a mutation of one of the two genes that suppress the development of tumours in the body.

People with the condition need regular checks by a skin specialist and generally surgery to remove the basal cell skin cancers.

For Kelly, from Ramsgate, the condition causes sight impairment, cysts in the jaw, reoccurring cancers needing regular surgeries every 6-12 weeks and the resulting scars.

But, she says she will not let the cancer limit her or stop her from achieving her goals.

Kelly said: “I live with this condition every single day — but I refuse to let it define me. I will not let cancer win. I will not let this condition stop me from living, working, and having an amazing life.

“It has made me braver and stronger, and I hope one day there will be a cure — not only for my condition, but for all cancers.”

Three years ago Kelly started an oral chemo treatment at the Royal Marsden Hospital.

She says although it was successful it was also ‘brutal’ with side effects including the loss of her hair, loss of taste, cramps and a dramatic weight-loss of some 11 stone, taking her down to seven stone.

She said: “I was admitted to hospital three times and had to have a feeding tube. The tube was left in for seven months.”

Kelly finished the oral treatment last month but continues to be under the care of Royal Marsden and says funding for the hospital is vital. The Royal Marsden is a world leader in cancer care, pioneering treatment and ground-breaking research.

She said: “I want to raise money for Royal Marsden to give back and help them look after other people.

“Despite everything, I’m still here. I’m still fighting. And with the Royal Marsden’s continued support, I’ve kept going.”

Kelly and her friend Heather Prentice will undertake the skydive at Maidstone on September 27.

It won’t be Kelly’s first skydive – she previously was ‘talked into’ taking part in a dive while in Australia.

She said: “I hated the thought of it! The freefall was horrible, flying through the air at 180mph, but when the parachute opened it was really relaxing.

“So, when my friend said she wanted to do a skydive I said let’s do it for Royal Marsden.

“The word “cancer” is just six letters long, but it affects 1 in 2 of us in our lifetimes. It destroys lives, changes families forever, and leaves a lasting mark. That’s why we need hospitals like the Royal Marsden — to help people fight, heal, and survive.

“I’m doing this to raise awareness of rare conditions like mine — and to support a cause that gives people hope, care, and a chance to keep going.”

To find Kelly’s fundraising page click here

A link to Heather’s page can be found on Kelly’s Justgiving site.