The team at Mater Private Hospital Redland are gearing up for the RACQ International Women’s Day Fun Run (IWDFR) on Sunday 8 March to help raise vital funds for breast cancer care and research.
They will don pink tee-shirts and join more than 570 Mater People, including the team from Mater Private Hospital Springfield and thousands more in a sea of pink, aiming to raise $750 000 for Mater Chicks in Pink.
For the Mater Redland team, this year will be particularly special as they will be running with their Volunteer Coordinator Wendy Moore who was diagnosed with breast cancer last year.
“I was diagnosed with stage-two breast cancer on 20 February 2019, it was a complete whirlwind and I was in total shock,” Wendy said.
“My mother died of ovarian cancer so I had annual mammograms to make sure anything untoward would be picked up and I’m so glad I did.
“The turnaround for my treatment was very quick, I was able to get in for surgery two days later to have the lump removed, and then I started radiation therapy. Fortunately I did not need to have chemotherapy.”
Wendy had six months off work to recuperate but is now back at Mater Redland doing what she loves and has the support of the whole team.
“Throughout my whole journey with cancer I was always treated with dignity, respect and compassion, the staff, management and the Mater Chicks in Pink were so supportive,” Wendy said.
This year the 29th annual IWDFR falls on Wendy’s 60th Birthday and she will be walking the 6km track from Brisbane Botanical Gardens with her friends, family and Mater Redland team members to honour her journey.
Funds raised from the event will go directly to the Mater Chicks in Pink who support patients being treated for breast cancer at Mater South Brisbane, Springfield and Redland Hospital plus funding world-class research into the disease.
Mater Private Hospital Redland supports the community with a cancer care centre featuring nine treatment chairs, rehabilitation gym and access to expert clinicians.
You can show your support to Wendy and all those running by donating to the RACQ International Women’s Day Fun Run here https://fundraise.mater.org.au/event/iwdfr/