The Big Shave for Cancer

My name is Heather and I am shaving my hair in support of my beautiful sister Vicki. Vicki is a Mum of 2 young girls, Aunty, daughter, and much loved friend to so many people.

Out of the blue in March this year, usually fit & well Vicki became acutely unwell. A CT revealed a bowel blockage and emergency surgery revealed her abdomen was riddled with cancer. Originally diagnosed with high grade serous ovarian cancer in advanced stage. Promptly Oncologists put Vicki through 4 round of chemo. A de-bulking surgery was attempted but abandoned because of the severe spread of the disease. At this time a biopsy was done and confirmed a misdiagnosis -Vicki infact has a rare type of Ovarian Cancer -Low Grade serous cancer -it occurs in around 5-10% of all Ovarian cancers. It does not respond to chemo nor are there any approved medications specifically designrd to slow or treat this horrendous disease.

For 3+ months no options or treatments were given but now we have some hope. Auckland Drs are willing to try a radical surgery to try and de-bulk as much cancer as possible. Vicki is also applicable for a rare gynecological cancer trial being run out of Australia. Whilst there is some hope, the recovery period from this surgery will be hard -including multiple bowel resections, multiple days in ICU and rehab. There are no guarantees but this is Vicki's best shot for more time to spend with her girls and do the things she loves.