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Help Heather defy the odds

  • Stuff feature story

      30 September 2026
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    Kia ora everyone,

    Stuff published a feature story about my treatment this morning, and I'm still a bit stunned to see it in print: https://www.stuff.co.nz/health/361037348/nzs-nuclear-patient-37-year-old-made-radioactive

    A huge thank you to Senior Health Journalist Nicholas Jones. It's really special to have my story documented, and I'm so grateful for the care and time Nick put into telling it. Thank you also to the Stuff team, and to everyone who made time to connect with them, including my partner Kyle, my family, Brain Tumour Support New Zealand (BTSNZ) and my medical specialists.

    And thank you to everyone who has donated, shared and sent messages along the way. If you'd like to share the article, it would mean a lot.

    If it brings new people to this page, welcome. I'm glad you're here.

    I'll keep you posted as treatment continues.

    Heather x

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  • We’ve reached $40,000 ❤️

      23 September 2026
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    It’s hard to believe that exactly a month ago we shared an update to say we’d reached $25,000. Today, we’ve reached $40,000.

    Thank you. Truly.

    To everyone who has donated, shared the page, organised fundraisers, sent messages, checked in, or simply followed along, we’re incredibly grateful. We’ve been blown away by the generosity of so many people, both here in Aotearoa and overseas.

    When we added the $45,000 goal a month ago, it was based on our best estimate of what we’d need for my treatment. We’re now very close to that figure, and rather than setting another goal, we’ve decided to leave the fundraiser open.

    My treatment is ongoing, with more treatment ahead.

    Next Tuesday, 29 September, I’ll be heading back to Auckland for my second dose of the trial radiopharmaceutical drug, aka radiation retreat Part II. This will involve another 3–4 night stay in an isolation room while I’m radioactive.

    All funds raised are held in a dedicated trust account managed by three trustees and will continue to be used for my treatment and related expenses.

    So there’s no new target. We’ll simply leave the page open as treatment continues.

    Thank you for helping get me this far. It means a huge amount to us, and we don’t take any of it for granted.

    Heather x

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    • 24/09/2026 by Laura

      Amazing generosity from an amazing network of humans who love ya xx

  • We’ve reached $25,000! ❤️

      23 August 2026
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    In just over a week, we’ve raised an incredible $25,000. We’re so grateful to everyone who has donated, shared our page and sent messages of support.

    Today we've added a financial goal to give a clearer picture of what we're raising funds for. $45,000 would cover three doses of the radiopharmaceutical treatment, hospital admissions, accommodation, and medications following discharge.

    We’re already more than halfway there — an amazing response from our loving community. Thank you for helping us get this far. ❤️

    Please continue to spread the word, thank you!

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