A charity fundraiser last week reached Pembrokeshire as part of his epic journey to walk 3,500 miles around the coast of England and Wales to highlight that cervical cancer can be eliminated in a generation.

Father of three, Laurence Carter, is completing the challenge for his wife, Melitta, who passed away at the age of 53 from cervical cancer.

He aims to raise £200,000 for Cancer Research UK so as to raise awareness that cervical cancer can be eliminated.

Laurence began his epic walk from his family’s home town of Seaford, East Sussex, last June and is making his way clockwise around the coast of England and Wales.

He’s done over 1,500 miles so far and reached Tenby last week, taking in Amroth along the way, and then Manorbier and Milford Haven as his journey continued.

Laurence has gone walkabout from his job at the World Bank Group to get men talking about cervical cancer and how it can be prevented. Laurence remembers his wife urging him to go to the screening appointments that were available for men, but he never thought to remind Melitta to go for a smear test.

He said: “My beautiful, wonderful wife, Melitta, mother of our three children, sister, daughter and beloved friend to many, died of cervical cancer in 2015. People were drawn to Melitta; she empathised, expressed opinions, argued, made you laugh. She made everyone feel alive. She enriched the lives of so many people, this is the least I can do for her. When I turned 50, Melitta started reminding me about health checks that were available for men but it never crossed my mind to remind her to go for cervical screening. Perhaps if I had raised it and she had gone six months earlier, she might be alive.

“So I am walking to raise awareness. Many men might not be familiar with the importance of smear tests, or that there is a safe, highly-effective vaccine which protects against the main types of the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) which cause cervical cancer.

“The women in their lives – daughters, sisters, mothers, girlfriends or wives - might be busy and putting off making an appointment, thinking it can wait. We should be reminding them to go for that appointment as soon as the letter comes, before it’s too late,” he continued.

The money Laurence raises will go towards a Cancer Research UK-supported project at University College London, led by Professor Jo Waller. Professor Waller is identifying ways to encourage more people to take part in HPV vaccination or regular cervical screening. Each year, around 3,200 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer in the UK. HPV vaccination and cervical screening reduce the risk of cervical cancer, as both can prevent cancer developing in the first place.

“The walk to Tenby, and beyond it to Manorbier, was beautiful. My friend and I had lunch at The Blue Ball, and we loved the food and the atmosphere,” added Laurence.

To follow Laurence’s progress and find out more about the challenge, visit 3500toendit.com