Help Donna Access Life-Extending Cancer Treatment
Help Donna access life-extending breast cancer treatment and create precious family memories while time allows.
Te Awamutu, Waikato
In late 2025, just one month after retiring, our mum Donna West received devastating news, her breast cancer had returned and progressed to HER2-low metastatic breast cancer.
Donna is trying to access ENHERTU (trastuzumab deruxtecan), a treatment not funded in New Zealand that her oncologist believes offers the best chance to extend her quality time with family.
Treatment costs are approximately $10,000 every 3 weeks and may continue for up to 2 years, depending on how Donna responds. We are also exploring treatment access in Australia, which may involve additional travel, accommodation, and medical costs.
Donna is far more than her diagnosis. She is a wife, mum, grandma, sister, aunty, friend, and the centre of many people’s lives. One of 14 siblings, at 12 Donna became a mother figure to her younger siblings after losing their mum.
Donna worked for Fonterra for 14 years, most recently at the Te Awamutu site, where she was known as the person everyone could rely on. She also shares a love of hot rods and travel with Dad and close friends.
Funds raised will support treatment, medical and travel costs, and meaningful family memories while Donna is still well enough to enjoy them.
From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for reading, sharing, donating, and supporting our family during this incredibly difficult time.
Amanda Straiton's involvement (page creator)
I am Donna West’s daughter and I am managing this fundraising page and the associated funds on Donna’s behalf to help remove the mental and financial stress, so she can focus on her treatment, health, and time with family during this difficult period.
Use of funds
Funds will support ENHERTU treatment, medical costs, possible alternative treatment access in Australia, travel, accommodation, and creating meaningful family memories while Donna is well enough to enjoy them.
If treatment becomes funded, cannot proceed, or funds remain, the balance will be donated equally to Sweet Louise NZ and Breast Cancer Research Trust.
Latest update
Turning Hair Loss Into a Whānau Moment 20 May 2026
Two weeks after Mum’s first round of the “Red Devil” chemo, her hair started falling out.
On Sunday 8th March, while Mason and his family were home from Australia, we chose to turn one of the hardest moments of this journey into something we would face together as a whānau.
We put Mum’s hair into 8 ponytails and each of the grandchildren and great-granddaughter took a turn cutting one off before we shaved the rest.
It was a day of mixed emotions. Tears, quiet hugs, moments of laughter, and time simply sitting with it. Each of us processed it in our own way.
It was heartbreaking watching someone you love go through this, but also beautiful seeing our whānau surround Mum with so much aroha and strength ❤️
Cancer takes so much, privacy, energy, confidence, hair, normal life.
But it cannot take whānau.
These photos capture a moment we will never forget. Not because of the hair, but because of the love around Mum.
Since then, Mum has continued treatment and has now started ENHERTU, the unfunded targeted treatment we are trying to help fund through Givealittle.
Thank you to everyone who has donated, shared, messaged and stood beside our whānau. Your support is helping us focus on what matters most, more time, more memories, more moments together ❤️
Ngā mihi nui ki a koutou katoa.
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