Jamie Rae: Founder and Legacy
Jamie Rae founded the Throat Cancer Foundation because he knew, from personal experience, how frightening, confusing and isolating a throat cancer diagnosis could be.
Diagnosed with HPV-related oropharyngeal cancer in 2010, Jamie saw first-hand the lack of clear information, support and public awareness around throat cancer. He also saw something else: a preventable risk that was not being taken seriously enough.
In 2012, he founded the Throat Cancer Foundation with two clear aims: to support people affected by throat cancer, and to campaign for better prevention, awareness and early diagnosis.
A Founder Who Refused To Accept The Status Quo
Jamie was not someone who accepted unfairness quietly.
After his diagnosis, he became deeply concerned that boys were not being offered the same protection against HPV as girls, despite HPV being linked to several cancers, including some throat cancers. He believed this was wrong, and he was determined to help change it.
Through the Throat Cancer Foundation, Jamie helped drive the campaign for gender-neutral HPV vaccination in the UK. He also played a key role in the creation and work of HPV Action, a coalition that brought together organisations, clinicians, researchers and campaigners with one shared aim: to secure HPV vaccination for boys as well as girls.
That campaign helped change public health policy in the UK.
Changing The Future For Others
Jamie’s work helped move HPV vaccination from being seen only through the lens of cervical cancer to being understood as wider cancer prevention.
The decision to extend HPV vaccination to boys was a landmark moment. It meant that future generations would have better protection against HPV-related cancers and diseases, including some cancers affecting the throat, mouth and head and neck.
For Jamie, this was never just about policy. It was about people. It was about families not having to go through what he and many others had faced. It was about prevention where prevention was possible.
More Than A Campaigner
Jamie was a businessman, advocate, campaigner, founder and force of nature. He could be direct, impatient and relentless when he believed something needed to change. That determination was one of the reasons the Throat Cancer Foundation became known not only for patient information and support, but for challenging systems, raising awareness and pushing for better protection against preventable cancers.
He understood that throat cancer was not just a clinical issue. It affected identity, family life, communication, eating, confidence, relationships, work and mental health. He wanted people to have better information, better support and a louder voice.
His Legacy Today
Jamie died on 5 May 2025, aged 60. His death was a huge loss to his family, friends, colleagues and everyone connected to the Throat Cancer Foundation.
But his legacy continues.
It continues in every young person protected through HPV vaccination.
It continues in every family who finds clear information when they need it most.
It continues in every person encouraged to recognise symptoms, trust their instincts and seek help.
It continues in the Throat Cancer Foundation’s ongoing work:
Prevention where we can. Early diagnosis where we can’t.
Continuing Jamie’s Work
The Throat Cancer Foundation remains committed to the principles Jamie helped build the charity around: prevention, awareness, early diagnosis, support, advocacy and fairness.
We will continue to campaign for better understanding of throat cancer, better access to clear information, better support for people affected by the disease, and stronger public health action where lives can be saved.
Jamie changed the conversation around HPV and throat cancer.
Our job now is to keep going.