Hi Everyone,
I am participating in the 170KM Ring of Kerry Cycle taking place July 2nd 2022, in memory of my late brother Barry Hayes who died of a rare cancer, to raise both awareness around Barry’s cancer, the symptoms of it, and to raise funds for Breakthrough Cancer Ireland to help them in the fight against poor prognosis cancers such as Barry was. Both things close to Barry’s heart!
https://breakthroughcancerresearch.ie/ is a Cork based medical research charity focused on cancer. They focus on funding world class cancer research into poor prognosis cancers, which are poorly served by current treatment. They facilitate collaboration between scientists and clinicians across Ireland and Internationally. Accelerating the translation of lab discoveries into new effective treatments for people with cancer.
Sadly my brother Barry, the youngest of our siblings aged only 38, passed away on March 13th this year after his own battle with one of these poor prognosis and rare cancers.
A little about Barry’s cancer, Barry was diagnosed with a Non Seminoma Germ Cell Tumour on his chest in December 2020. These are unfortunately one of the cancers we are not yet best at treating. Sadly they occur most commonly in males between the ages of 15 and 39. They are known to grow quickly and aggressively which can make them both difficult to detect and to treat. Symptoms include a cough, fever, chest pain, night sweats. Barry’s tumour was located near both his heart and lungs making it all the more difficult to treat and remove surgically. Despite the excellent medical team at St. James Dublin and UHW Waterford, having the best treatments made available to him radiotherapy, high dose chemotherapy, stem cell transplants and Barry’s courage and strength to endure them, his Tumour resisted these treatments. As a last attempt, and brave decision by Barry, in June 2021 he underwent a difficult and high risk surgery, against the odds Barry woke, and to the news, his tumour had been successfully removed from his chest. Barry recovered well from his operation and was cancer free, we hoped for good.
Sadly this was short lived and 5 months later in January of this year Barry’s cancer reoccurred in his chest and quickly spread. This time we had to hear those words nobody wants to hear, there was no hope for Barry, his cancer simply was not treatable or curable. He had given it everything. Chemotherapy has taken a toll on Barry’s body too. Despite having the best treatments available to us for Barry’s Cancer they simply were not enough to save or cure him. The science simply was not there yet. Breakthrough Cancer Research’s mission is “100% survival for 100% of cancers” which is why it is a mission is so close to my heart and one close to Barry’s. Please help me help them so others don’t have to hear the words we and Barry did, that there is no hope, no cure !
Please DONATE if you can, and SHARE THIS POST on your page and with your family and friends especially if you are a friend of Barry’s, he would be most grateful as are we !!!
Many thanks! Read more about if anyone interested taken partRing of Kerry Charity Cycle 2022. if anyone interested taken part anyone