A LIFE-SIZE 3D letter-form sculpture of Ealing man David Innes has gone on display as part of a new public art installation in Paternoster Square, London, to mark the launch of the Make Blood Cancer Visible campaign.

The sculpture of David's name stands at 6ft tall – David's exact height – and is one of 104 sculptures on display throughout September, blood cancer awareness month, to represent the 104 people that are diagnosed with it every day.

The installation, created by designer Paul Cocksedge, sponsored by Janssen Pharmaceuticals and supported by nine blood cancer patient support groups, including the Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia Support Association (CLLSA), aims to bring much-needed attention to blood cancer across the UK.

Ealing resident David Innes is chair of the Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia Support Association (CLLSA).

He said: “I was completely devastated when I was diagnosed with CLL,  the most common form of leukaemia in adults in the UK.

“Living with a long-term incurable blood cancer presents many people with enormous physical and emotional pressures. Our research shows that 66% of people with CLL are living with anxiety, 50% with stress and 34% with depression. “

A third of people with CLL go to their doctor feeling unwell, with swollen lymph nodes, liver or spleen enlargement, symptoms of anaemia or bruising.

But the majority are diagnosed by chance, often from a routine blood test taken for another reason.

Half of patients will not require treatment after ten years. For the other half, their disease will have progressed, requiring treatment. The unpredictability of the disease and fear of it progressing is particularly difficult to cope with.