My husband Craig is currently undergoing chemotherapy to treat a non-Hodgkins lymphoma diagnosis that he received late last year. He's okay, has a good medical team around him, and his prognosis is positive. In a way, he's been lucky (as strange as that sounds given he has been diagnosed with cancer twice in the last 14 years), as following a battery of tests and surgery it has been classified as stage 1 which means his treatment regime is easier than it could have been.

Unfortunately, one of the side effects of having chemo is that he has started to lose his hair, which hasn’t been cut since we started lockdown in the UK in March 2020.  As some of you know, I've been hassling him for a LONG TIME to get a haircut, and given the situation he's decided to shave it all off next week rather than losing his hair in a drawn out process.  He also looked into donating his hair for wig making, but has been disappointed to find out that it is a few cm short of the minimum length requirements.

To create something positive out of this situation, I have decided to embrace a British tradition by turning his haircut into a fundraising event for charity. I would like to raise funds for Macmillan in the UK and Tour de Cure in Australia, and it would be great if you were able to help by making a donation.

The person who makes the largest donation in either location can nominate a message or image they want to be shaved into the side of his head (within reason!!).  In addition, to really get bang for our buck, I will match all donations made to both charities, and Macquarie will also match the total funds raised through their charitable foundation. Therefore, every A$ or £ you donate will be quadrupled!

Craig also has a message that he wants me to share: "Like my breast cancer years ago, my good prognosis is partially due to an early catch - so everyone please self-examine your breasts regularly, and lads please also do the same down there (yes, that’s where this one started). If something doesn’t seem right, please get it checked out as soon as possible."

For those who may be wondering, we have chosen Tour de Cure very deliberately as our Australian charity.  Some of you may already know of this charity cycle ride through Channel 7’s breakfast show, or through some of the celebrity riders (including Tour de France legends) who participate.  Most importantly, our friend Steve Thom has been riding and raising funds for this charity for many years.  He spends his early mornings training for their annual event, which this year will be a 1,300km ride from Geelong to Canberra.  Since 2007, the charity has funded over 500 cancer projects, some of which have provided significant breakthroughs, so we want to ensure that their funding continues.