Help Heather defy the odds

I was diagnosed with glioblastoma (GBM), a rare type of brain cancer, in mid-2023. I had an awake craniotomy, followed by chemotherapy and radiation therapy in Te Whanganui-a-Tara, Wellington. I had nearly two years without recurrence, but the cancer has come back. I had a second craniotomy in May and restarted daily chemotherapy.

I'm currently in Auckland for radiopharmaceutical therapy not routinely available in New Zealand – approved for my specific case by my Radiation Oncologist, Dr Anthony Falkov, outside of a clinical trial. It'll mean a few days in an isolation room, followed by more targeted radiotherapy.

The treatment itself is funded, which I'm incredibly grateful for. But everything around it isn't – the hospital stay, flights and accommodation in Auckland, ongoing medication, specialist consultations, and the scans that track whether it's working. And this doesn't stop after this round.

Donations will go into a trust account, managed by three trustees on my behalf, and go directly towards my medical treatment and related costs. Any amount helps – and if you can't give, sharing this page means just as much.

I'm not ready to give up. Between tramping in the Tararuas, keelboat sailing, and restoring mid-century furniture with my dad, there's a lot of life I still want to live – and two nephews in Tauranga and a niece in the US I want to watch grow up. I've spent three years fighting this horrible disease and your support helps me keep doing it.

Thank you.

Heather