FAMILY and friends of an inspirational Worcester woman have raised thousands of pounds for two causes close to her heart.

Julie Price, of Bilford Road, bravely battled cancer for eight years and she fund-raised tirelessly for several charities until her death in March last year at the age of 38.

After her initial diagnosis in 2002, the married mother-of-one raised money for Cancer Research UK by running the Race for Life three times and held events to support Breakthrough Breast Cancer and the Worcestershire Breast Unit Campaign.

Mrs Price had hoped to reach her 40th birthday and so to mark the occasion in her honour, family and friends organised a glamorous charity autumn ball.

The event, which took place at the end of September at the White House Hotel in Foregate Street, Worcester, raised just over £3,500, which was shared equally between St Richard’s Hospice and the Worcestershire Breast Unit Campaign.

Mrs Price’s sisters, Sarah Farrell and Karen Gill, visited the site of the new unit to present a cheque to consultant breast surgeon Steven Thrush, who initiated the breast unit campaign.

Mrs Gill said: “People were very generous. Julie would have really enjoyed the ball as her 40th. We tried to make it a party as well as a fund-raising event.

“The hospice was fantastic to her in the last couple of weeks of her life and they were brilliant to the rest of us. I think the new unit will make treatment more comfortable and better all round.

“We have been able to do something positive in Julie’s memory and we’ve kept her spirit alive.”

Mrs Gill also thanked everyone who had contributed to the party and donated prizes for the raffle.

Mr Thrush said: “The support we’ve had from the population of the county is incredible. It’s such an important thing we need. The generosity and the time people are putting into supporting it is wonderful.”