The campaign for the Centre for Cancer Immunology would like to thank all University staff who supported the #WearingWhite activity which took place ahead of World Cancer Day on Saturday 4 February.

In the run up to World Cancer Day, staff were encouraged to share their #WearingWhite photographs on social media with messages honouring loved ones who have fought cancer, or messages of support for our research. The activity culminated with our #WearingWhite Day on Friday 3 February, when staff were invited to wear something white and donate £3 to the new life-saving centre.

The #WearingWhite idea came from the colour of the hero blood cells,  which are the focus of our research. By boosting these cells to seek out and destroy cancer, we are seeing fantastic results in patient clinical trials.

The activity engaged many people, with the #WearingWhite message reaching 850,000 people across our University channels. The campaign video – featuring many familiar faces from across the University community – was also viewed over 8,500 times.

#WearingWhite photos were posted by University staff, students, patients, alumni and campaign supporters, and also reached out to new communities.

Jo Donahoe, Director of the Office of Development and Alumni Relations, said:

It was such a proud moment to see so many people from across the University coming together to support the campaign, whether they were wearing something white or joining in on social media. We are very excited that our campaign total is now at £20.5m as we enter the final phase. We are grateful to everyone involved; we couldn’t do it without you.

Further support for the campaign is already underway, with many staff signed up to run the ABP Southampton marathon, half marathon or 10k in aid of the Centre on Sunday 23 April. For details on how to take part, and to benefit from the campaign’s unique entry discount, visit http://www.southampton.ac.uk/youreit/get-involved/.