Kerol's Story

In August 2020, after going to her doctor three times, Kerol was told the symptoms she was experiencing were ulcers and menopause. It didn’t feel right for Kerol, so she went to a different doctor, who said if she felt any worse over the weekend to ring an ambulance straight away. Once Monday morning came around, she had to call an ambulance. Upon arrival she was assessed by a doctor and sent for a CT scan.

Kerol says, “Both her and the nurse with her had tears in their eyes as we live in a small town and we know lots of people including both of them. Turns out I had a tumor in my right ovary the size of a softball. They then kept me in hospital to manage the pain. They contacted Brisbane and got me an appointment with my surgeon and from there it was a whirlwind”.

Following her diagnosis, Kerol went into surgery in October to treat the tumour. She had a hysterectomy & Bilateral Salpingo-oophorectomy and six weeks later started Chemotherapy for six months.

Kerol sought resources from OCA including the Resilience Kit available online. She was also partnered with ovarian cancer support nurse Di and they speak every three weeks.

“Di would give really helpful advice and tips on how to cope with different things as we were all in lock down during Covid. I'm very pleased that I had Di,” Kerol said.

“Even though I have a huge network of friends & family here, it was great to talk to someone who had more of an understanding of what was happening to me & my body. Di has been amazing to me and I really look forward to our chats & many laughs”.

Kerol wearing her Overies for Ovaries teal undies

Kerol and her family have been huge supporters of the Overies for Ovaries campaign. 

“The reason I decided to support the Overies for Ovaries Campaign was I could involve my husband and we could both have a few laughs,” Kerol said. “He loves his Jockey Overies and mine are so comfy”.

On World Ovarian Cancer Day, Kerol dressed as a super hero and when one of her grandson’s asked about her powers, she said, “I fight cancer”. 

Overies are still available in store and online, and with 100% of profits going to Ovarian Cancer Australia, we can continue to support superheros like Kerol.

Following World Ovarian Cancer Day, we want to thank everyone who has supported our Overies for Ovaries campaign.  

From the generosity of our supporters, we are able to continue supporting people like Kerol, living with ovarian cancer. It’s not too late to get a pair of Overies undies so head in store to Bonds, Bras N Things or Jockey or go online to get involved.