Professor Bates intends to ski the 180 kilometres from Chamonix to Zermatt along the haute route, or ‘high route’, across some of the highest mountain passes in Europe. He will be accompanied by four friends. Together, they hope to raise up to £10,000 for the British Heart Foundation (BHF), Cancer Research UK, Skin Cancer Research Fund, the Association for International Cancer Research and a local Bristol charity, the Richard Bright VEGF Research Trust, all of which have played a key part in funding his research into understanding and finding new treatments for cancer, heart disease, blindness, diabetes and kidney failure.

Professor Bates said: ‘Over the past 20 years, the medical research into the role of blood vessels in health and disease has been almost exclusively supported by organisations such as the BHF, cancer charities and so on. As a prelude to turning 40 in May, I thought I would try and give something back by undertaking a fundraising event myself.’

If you would like to sponsor Professor Bates, visit the website at www.mvrl.org/trek.html or email dave.bates@bristol.ac.uk.