West Ham will mark the second anniversary of the death of young Hammer Dylan Tombides by showing his picture on the big screens on 38 minutes at tomorrow’s Premier League match against Watford. Mother, Tracy Tombides tweeted out from the DT38 foundation’s official twitter account “APPLAUSE 4 DYLAN: So grateful 2 @whufc_official 4 a 38m applause 4 Dylan @WatfordFC match 2mrw. Pls spread the word.”
The DT38 Foundation was set up in memory of Dylan James Tombides. Dylan was an Australian International and West Ham football player who passed away aged 20 in April 2014 after a 3 year battle with testicular cancer. The West Ham Family thought so highly of Dylan that they retired his number 38 and made DT38 one of their principal charities.
The charity was formed as a result of Dylan initially being misdiagnosed. The vision of the foundation is to change the way testicular cancer is diagnosed by implementing best practice diagnostic guidelines for patients who present with testicular symptoms. They also aim to arm future generations of young men with the necessary knowledge about testicular cancer that will enable them to be confident when taking health matters into their own hands.
Their mission is to raise awareness and change the stigma associated with men’s health issues with a focus on testicular cancer. They aim to do this through providing educational programmes and opportunities for the youth of our community, to help shape a generation of children who are self- aware about their health and wellbeing.
Their main goals are to:
1. Drive the SELF- AWARENESS campaign for the early detection of testicular cancer
2. Focus on youth EDUCATION through various teaching programme’s aligned to national curriculum
3. Provide OPPORTUNITIES linked to fun and accessible activities within the community
Please remember Dylan and support awareness by joining in the applause on 38 minutes
