Known as Run for Gold, the campaign will see cancer awareness advocate Lim Shyang Guey run 2,200km across Peninsular Malaysia over approximately 90 days, in partnership with the National Cancer Society Malaysia (NCSM). The initiative aims to raise RM600,000 to support childhood cancer awareness efforts and services for young patients and their families. Lim is scheduled to begin the journey on 28 March from the NCSM–MPPP Home of Hope in Penang, travelling through all 11 states in Peninsular Malaysia and the federal territories before returning on 22 June, which coincides with his 67th birthday.

For the 66-year-old runner, the journey is deeply personal. Two years after losing his wife, Joo Lee, to gallbladder cancer, Lim decided to transform his grief into a mission to support families facing similar challenges. Having served as her caregiver during the final months of her illness, he witnessed first-hand the emotional toll cancer takes on both patients and caregivers.

“Cancer affects not just the patient, but the caregiver as well. If I can do something to help relieve that suffering, that will be my mission,” he said. The run also fulfils a dream he once shared with his late wife — to travel around Peninsular Malaysia on foot. “This journey is driven by love, remembrance and the desire to make a difference,” Lim added.

Over the course of the run, Lim plans to cover between 25km and 35km each day, with rest days scheduled along the route. The journey will take him from Penang north to Kedah and Perlis, before crossing the mountainous East-West Highway into Kelantan. He will then travel down the east coast through Terengganu and Pahang, continue south to Johor, and head north again through Melaka, Kuala Lumpur and Ipoh before returning to Penang.

The challenge will conclude with an ambitious 78km run around Penang Island in a single day. Run for Gold will also form the torch relay component of Relay For Life Malaysia 2026, carrying messages of hope and solidarity to communities along the route.

Funds raised through the initiative will be channelled to the National Cancer Society Malaysia to support childhood cancer programmes. These include services provided through the Home of Hope centres, as well as psychosocial care and survivorship support for young patients and their families in Penang, Perak and Kuala Lumpur.

Throughout the 90-day journey, NCSM will organise more than 60 community engagement events in towns along the route. These activities will include cancer awareness programmes, community outreach and opportunities for survivors and caregivers to share their experiences.

Through this journey, Lim hopes to encourage older Malaysians to stay active and use their experience and networks to support meaningful causes.