Helping people affected by cancer

Your amazing Dry July fundraising is helping support Flinders Foundation

Thank you for supporting Flinders Foundation this Dry July.

Together we raised over $18,000 which will purchase a SOZO machine for the Breast and Endocrine Clinic at Flinders so many of the 7,500 patients who visit the clinic each year - with either a new breast cancer diagnosis or for ongoing check-ups - can be monitored for developing breast cancer-related lymphoedema. This will give patients affected by breast cancer the best chance of detecting lymphoedema early, so treatment can start as soon as possible to stop the condition from progressing.

Thank you for supporting Mater Foundation this Dry July

We are pleased to announce that with your help we raised an astounding $16,433 for the Mater Cancer Care Centre. We are extremely grateful for your fundraising efforts and dedication.

Your fundraising for Dry July will help the Mater Cancer Care Centre alleviate the considerable personal and social costs of treatment experienced by women with early-stage female-specific cancers through the Women’s Wellness After Cancer Program (WWACP) at Mater.

The 12-week program aims to improve quality of life and lessen the risk of chronic disease through targeted lifestyle management options, including physical activity, healthy eating and better sleep and lifestyle habits.

On behalf of all the patients and staff at the Mater Cancer Care Centre, we...

Thank you for taking on the Dry July challenge this year

Thank you for taking on the Dry July challenge this year. We are delighted to announce that with your help Pinc & Steel Cancer Rehabilitation Foundation Australia raised an astounding $24,120.61. Such a great result.

We are beyond grateful for your fundraising efforts and dedication. By taking part in Dry July, you have helped us support more people in their recovery from cancer. This not only reduces the burden of cancer for the individual but also for their loved ones too.

Our PINC & STEEL cancer rehab programs are focused on improving the quality of life and experience of people diagnosed with any type of cancer. Helping them overcome symptom distress, regain strength, mobility, and energy so they can participate fully in their...

Gile's Story

“Our happiness bubble suddenly popped”: Giles Purbrick’s blood cancer diagnosis, days after becoming a father

In January 2020, Giles and wife Jacqui welcomed their baby daughter into the world. But just days later, Giles was hit with a shock blood cancer diagnosis that turned everything on its head.

After a few years of failed IVF and other treatments, Giles Purbrick and his wife Jacqui were thrilled to finally become parents after giving birth to their “golden child” on New Year’s Day in 2020.

“I had recently started a new job and was excited about pursuing fresh career opportunities. I’d also just completed the Melbourne marathon. So, on the face of it, life was good and full of promise,” Giles says.

But a week later, Giles and Jacqui...

Heather's Story

A month after her 50th birthday in 2010, Heather received her bowel cancer screening kit in the mail. After a year, Heather decided to take the test and soon received the test results which were positive. After a colonoscopy and a CT scan, the diagnosis was clear: stage three bowel cancer.

Everything moved fast from there, a week after results came back in the mail, Heather was in hospital for surgery. "I really had no time to think and process” she says. “I’m a very 'positive person and I just wanted to get on with it. And felt really lucky that I had caught it so early.” After surgery, Heather went through five months of chemotherapy as part of a clinical trial. After some issues with her pacemaker, she stopped the trial and received...

Will's Story

In July 2020, at the age of 42, Nine Newsreader Will McDonald was diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer after developing a pain in his hip.

When diagnosed, specialists found that the cancer had already spread outside the prostate to his left hip.

Being diagnosed with aggressive cancer at such a young age came as a complete shock.

“My dad was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2019 at the age of 75. They found his relatively early and he’s back to full health now,” says Will.

“After dad was diagnosed, I knew that I had an increased risk of prostate cancer – but to be diagnosed so soon was a lot to take in.

“But just days after my prostate cancer diagnosis, I made the decision to do everything I possibly can to stay positive, strong and...

Anthony's Story

I presented to my GP in July 2019 with a sudden and persistent change of bowel habits (basically some diarrhoea that hung around for a week or so).

Over the next three months, I had a few blood tests, a stool test, and a colonoscopy, after which I was met in recovery by the surgeon.

He told me he had found a mass in the bowel, and there were some query spots in the liver.

I was sent immediately for a CT scan and then sat in the same surgeon’s office, three days before turning 40, to be told I had Stage 4 metastatic bowel cancer.

Due to the 21 bi-lobar mets in my liver, I was told it was ‘unresectable’ and so I was to start palliative chemotherapy within three weeks.

One week later, in went the port-a-cath, and then one week after that I...

Dry Julyers help fund Lymphscanners for Wollongong Hospital

Lymphoedema is a chronic condition for which there is no cure and for which there are no pharmacological treatment agents available. Once established lymphoedema often negatively affects a person’s quality of life, physical function, body image and puts them at high risk of developing serious medical issues such as cellulitis infections.

Breast Lymphoedema is becoming an issue for cancer survivors. It has been found that 24.8% of patients undergoing breast conserving surgery and radiation develop breast edema in the first 18 months post breast cancer diagnosis. Research also finds that breast edema is correlated with breast pain, reduced quality of life, reduced physical function, poor body image and can impact negatively on sexuality.

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Terry's Story

Lifelong cricket fan, Terry, has watched the McGrath Foundation grow ever since the first Pink Test in 2009, but he never thought he would need the support of a McGrath Breast Care Nurse himself. Sadly, the 76-year-old was one of the estimated 212 men diagnosed with breast cancer in Australia every year and he found out first-hand how vital their support is. Not only was Terry’s diagnosis unusual but how he found out was also uncommon. It was thanks to a prostate cancer diagnosis.

“Early in November 2021, my wife found a lump on my breast. The doctors sent me for an ultrasound and it came back as hard, fatty tissue. There was no issue,” Terry says. “Then in December, I had some tests because my PSA (prostate-specific antigen) levels were...