NEARLY 500 women and men hit the streets of Perth on Saturday for the annual Hawaiian Walk for Women’s Cancer to raise money for breast and ovarian cancer research at Perth’s Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research.
Walkers, including 10 medical researchers, completed the 35km or 42km course that started and finished at The University of Western Australia.
Two teams gave a nod to Star Wars Day naming their teams, May the Fourth be With You and The Storm Hooters.
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READ NOWMay the Fourth be With You was the biggest fund raising team of the event, raising more than $38,000.
The team of walkers from Community News raised $14,625.96.
The leading individual fund raiser was cancer survivor Peta-Jane Secrett who was diagnosed with cancer the same week she found she was pregnant. Peta-Jane has raised more than $24,000.
Each walker committed to raising $1000 but Director of the Perkins, Professor Peter Leedman said the vast majority raised far more.
“Every year people go above and beyond in their effort to help the cancer research conducted here in Perth at our laboratories, often because they have felt the tragedy cancer causes and want to help make it a non-lethal disease,” he said.
“We also have people who walk who are undergoing cancer treatment.
“Their courage and determination to make a difference for others is inspirational.”
Professor Leedman said the Perkins investigated the major diseases in our community including cancers affecting women.
“We also focus on the hard to treat cancers, such as triple negative breast cancer which doesn’t respond to conventional treatments,” he said.
“We have researchers dedicated to developing better medicines.
“We have researchers collaborating with bio-engineers examining the use of nano-particles or microscopic particles that carry a GPS to transport treatments through the blood stream to the cancer.
“Medical research is the only way to make cancer a non-lethal disease and with the help of all our walkers and their supporters, that day will be brought closer.”
For more information visit www.walkforwomenscancer.org.au.