Co Antrim man 'thinks pink' to raise funds for cancer charity

Carrickfergus couple Fiona and Andy McFall initially set a target of £300 in aid of 1 in 3 Cancer Support, with Andy getting a pink manicure in exchange for donations.

Following suggestions from friends he then dyed his beard the same shade, after which the couple saw the fundraising total soar.

The online crowdfunder currently sits at over £3500, money which will go towards the services of a charity Fiona says was "fantastic" throughout her own cancer journey.

"I was diagnosed with breast cancer five years ago, and had chemotherapy and radiotherapy," she said.

It was not the first time the illness had touched Fiona's family, with her sister, Gina, sadly passing away from ovarian cancer.

Her other sister and her niece have also had to deal with a breast cancer diagnosis.

"We all got through our treatments and then, at the start of lockdown, I developed a cough," said Fiona.

"I knew it wasn't Covid as I didn't have any other symptoms, but there was a swelling at the bottom of my chest."

Further tests revealed pleural effusion, meaning the cancer had metastasized, spreading to her liver and spine.

Despite the devastating news, the 51-year-old said she is taking it "one day at a time".

"We're not the type to take things lying down," she added.

"I just wanted to give something back to 1 in 3, as they really have been fantastic."

An east-Antrim based charity, 1 in 3 was founded in 2008 with the aim of supporting local families affected by cancer and its treatments.

The group is currently reminding local people that its therapy garden at Eden remains open throughout the Covid crisis.

--

Message from the Editor

Thank you for reading this article. We're more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by Coronavirus impacts our advertisers.

Please consider purchasing a copy of the paper. You can also support trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription of the News Letter.