App to keep you fit, help cancer patients in UAE

Sharjah - The Relay For Life (RFL) app follows the announcement of the RFL 24-hour cancer walkathon,

A new phone app unveiled on Tuesday will help residents keep fit while they help raise funds for cancer patients. The Relay For Life (RFL) app follows the announcement of the RFL 24-hour cancer walkathon that will be held on November 23-24 at the American University of Sharjah.

According to the Friends of Cancer Patients (FoCP), downloading the app and registering personal details will make one part of the RFL community. The app will keep track of the number of steps the user takes. Each goal on the app is linked to the completion of a certain number of steps, which once taken, enables the user to donate a specified amount to the FoCP.

The app charts out a set of 'journeys' and links them to fundraising goals. The first journey requires 3,000 steps to be taken in 30 days, linked to a donation of Dh25 on achieving the goal. The other journeys are: 8,000 steps to be completed in 30 days with a donation of Dh50; and 12,000 steps in 30 days with a donation of Dh75. The fourth journey is participating in the 24-hour RFL event. The FoCP has set a goal of 1 billion steps to be achieved.

"The purpose of the RFL UAE app is to enable users maintain healthy lifestyles and reduce their risk of cancer and other lifestyle diseases. While doing so, they attach their personal journeys to those of thousands of cancer patients fighting the disease. The app will come in handy before and after the RFL 2019 walkathon, tracking users' steps all year round, enabling them to be in a virtual relay and connected with the global RFL community always," the FoCP said.

Badr Al Juaidi, RFL programme Manager, said the app serves as a permanent platform of fitness and health. "The application will be a lifelong aide, supporting users to keep track of their daily physical activity and link that to a larger, common goal of raising vital funds that will support cancer patients."

The registration fee for participants above the age of 13 is Dh25, which will go towards supporting cancer patients.

afkarali@khaleejtimes.com

• Sharjah