When Fiona decided to run the City2Surf for the first time she asked her brothers, Christopher and Stephen, and nephews, Timothy and Ben to join her.

Aptly named “Bums on the run’ the family team signed up to take on the 14km fun run that incorporates ‘heartbreak hill’, all to raise awareness around bowel cancer and funds for Bowel Cancer Australia.

Even though they are based in Melbourne and Canberra, everyone said yes, as the family were coming together to support their Sister and Aunt who has recently had treatment for bowel cancer.

“Bowel cancer is the second deadliest cancer in Australia. I only discovered how prevalent bowel cancer was last year when my sister (who had just turned 50) was diagnosed. I found this incredibly surprising as when my sister was diagnosed my family of origin had had no history of cancer. Heart disease - yes, cancer no,” said Fiona.

“Here is what I learnt and wanted to share - people who are over 50, you need to do the Bowel screen test every 2 years. Early diagnosis is key to positive outcomes.”

“Things that everyone can do to reduce your risk - regular exercise (30mins per day), increase your daily intake of whole grain and high fibre foods (approx 90grams), and where possible include dairy products in your diet (approx 400grams),” Fiona added.

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“So, while some of us had to train hard to ensure that we made it to the end without stopping, one “forgot" to register (thankfully we found someone who had to pull out and managed to “get a bib”), & others didn’t train at all and breezed through!”

Overall, everyone in the team had a great run, with each person achieving their stated goal and a PB for the City2Surf (it helps if you have never run it before).

“Our friends and colleagues have been amazing with their generosity, encouraging us to raise the bar on our fundraising efforts - we started out with a goal of $1500 and have raised over $3000!”

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Pictured: Tim, Ben Christopher, Stephen & Fiona … We made it to Bondi …. 


If you were inspired by Fiona's story and would like to take part in a sporting challenge as a fun way to raise awareness and much needed funds for Bowel Cancer Australia, check out our Events and Activities Calendar or get in touch with us on 02 9923 8269 or through our webform.