Bundaberg woman Carla Browne has joined the quest to make prostate cancer history this September, signing up for The Long Run in honour of her dad.
Held during Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, The Long Run calls on locals to run, walk or wheel 72km throughout the month to raise funds and awareness for those impacted by the disease.
Carla was inspired to take action and join the mission after tragically losing her dad to the illness only a few months ago.
“This is very hard for me to talk about after losing Dad only 18 weeks ago, he will proud of me doing this,” she said.
“We lost Dad to prostate cancer in March this year after a long 16-year battle. I miss him terribly.
“He was my hero and first love and was a true Aussie battler.
“No matter how much pain his treatment put on him, he always had a positive outlook on life.
“Even right at the end he just would not give up and this is my inspiration for life now.”
Carla said she decided to take part in The Long Run as a way of saying thank you to the doctors and nurses who supported him throughout his cancer battle, and to spread more awareness about the disease.
“We spoke many times at great length about organising something that we could do that would give back and say thank you to all the medical and support staff that helped Dad throughout his journey, and to bring awareness to the community about prostate cancer,” she said.
“When I think of the struggles that Dad faced with this disease and how hard he fought, doing 72km in September is nothing in comparison to what he had to endure.”
It’s not only Carla’s dad who has been affected by prostate cancer.
Her uncles and grandfather were also previously diagnosed, making her even more motivated to spread awareness and help more men detect the disease earlier.
“This would mean that my husband, brothers and nephews could benefit from updated technology and research into prostate cancer,” she said.
“We only heard about PCFA late last year and the more I learn about it, the more I wish we’d known about it at lot earlier as I think dad would have really benefited from this.”
Locals can get behind Carla’s efforts by donating at www.thelongrun.org.au/fundraisers/carlabrowne.
She is also being sponsored by Grillex and is looking for any other businesses within the community who’d be interested in providing further sponsorship.
Locals can also register in one easy step via thelongrun.org.au.
