A breast cancer survivor climbed Machu Picchu without her chemotherapy medication, to support the charity that helped ‘piece her back together’.
Kirsty Hanberry, 49, of Millhouses, was diagnosed with a rare form of breast cancer in October 2020.
Mrs Hanberry said: “There were times when I really thought I was dying. With the chemotherapy they are giving you its enough treatment to not kill you but enough to kill the cancer, and obviously I lost my hair. It was incredibly difficult.”
In seven weeks Kirsty underwent four surgeries and seven rounds of chemotherapy, as the cancer had spread to her lymph nodes and needed to be removed.
Her treatments started during the height of the pandemic, making it difficult to get the support she needed from her family and friends.
She said: “With it being in Covid it was really difficult because no friends or family could come and support me. I had to tell my mum and dad in the woods.
“They said they really needed to hug me, but because they were in their 70s they didn’t want to put themselves or me at risk, as I was going through chemotherapy. Instead they put their raincoats on backwards, so their face and arms were covered, and they hugged me and my two girls.”
In April 2022 Kirsty was told the good news that she had no visible cancer.
So to pay thanks to Sheffield’s Cavendish Cancer Care, a charity that had supported her and her family, she organised a hike to raise money for them.
She decided she would do the hike up Peru’s Machu Picchu without taking her chemotherapy medication, as she did not want her stamina to be affected by the severity of the drugs.
However the drugs would still be in her system.
On 6 October Kirsty, her sister and her nephew started their journey to Peru, and covered 28 miles in four days at the altitude of 4,550 metres.
The group reached the Sun Gate on the fourth day, an area with a viewpoint of the entirety of Machu Picchu.
Kirsty said: “There were a lot of tears at that point as I was incredibly proud. It’s really hard when you go through what I’ve been through and you don’t know whether you’re going to be here or not.
“You have to face the fact that you might die, so not only was I here after all the treatment but I was also here standing at Machu Picchu.”
Kirsty’s hike managed to raise £10,000, however the fundraising has not stopped and continues to take donations towards the Sheffield Cavendish Charity.
Mrs Hanberry said: “They literally helped me to piece myself back together again. I know what impact they will have on other families, and I wanted to be able to let them go on and support other people that are not as lucky. Cavendish says that once you’ve joined you’re a friend for life.”
To donate money towards Kirsty’s fundraiser visit: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/kirstyperu?utm_source=Sharethis&utm_medium=fundraising&utm_content=kirstyperu&utm_campaign=pfp-email&utm_term=4f757bc473ef450686f7c2ac810348c0
Edited by Toria Christie