Hitting the road for cancer cure
They might be called grey nomads, but Brian and Chris Hardaker are circling Australia on a mission.
Riding a three-wheeled Can-Am Spyder, the Mandurah couple are raising funds for leukaemia research.
Seventy-two-year-old Brian knows more about the disease than he would like.
In 2006 he was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, which is a cancer of the plasma cells in bone marrow.
Plasma cells produce antibodies that help the body’s immune system fight disease, but in multiple myeloma those plasma cells grow out of control in the bone marrow and form tumours in the areas of solid bone.
He said when his doctor gave him the news and told him treatment was possible, it was done with a sense of humour.
“He said if the treatment was successful, I could look at another 10 to 15 years of useful life,” Brian recalled.
“Then he said that if it wasn’t, I could put my head between my legs and kiss my bum goodbye.”
He began oral chemotherapy in 2007 using thalidomide, infamous in the 1960s for causing birth defects, and recalled with delight the consent form he had to sign.
“I had to state that I would not have sexual relations with a woman of child-bearing age,” Brian said.
“As I was 68 by then, I think the chances were already pretty slim!”
Higher rates of chemotherapy and stem cell implants, using stem cells from his own body, saw his condition gradually improve and by the end of 2009 he was declared in partial remission.
Unable to resume his great passion of flying, Brian’s fancy was taken by the odd design of the Can-Am Spyder, and the idea of riding one around Australia soon entered his mind.
“We were thinking of visiting friends at Noosa in Queensland, so we decided to raise money for the Leukaemia Foundation at the same time,” he said.
“They have been so helpful to us through all this, we want to repay them in some way.”
Getting on and off their unusual vehicle was difficult at first, but they have mastered the technique.
Ulysses Club motorcyclists will meet them along the way and they are ready to enjoy being grey nomads on a mission.
GARY WARNER
