A STROUD teacher facing a course of chemotherapy has put a positive face on her illness by donating her hair to be made into wigs for young patients.

Karen Golding, who teaches at Stroud Valley School, knew she’d lose her own hair as a side-effect of her treatment for cancer. So she's taken the brave step of having her own long hair cut off prior to treatment starting.

The hair has been given to the Little Princess Trust which provides wigs made from real hair, free of charge, to children across the UK and Ireland who’ve lost their own hair through cancer treatment.

Karen says: “I’m not happy about losing my hair but it can be so much worse for a child with cancer. They’re having a hard enough time without the stress of looking different.

“I worked on the oncology ward at Bristol Children’s Hospital while training to be a nursery nurse, and I know that the Little Princess Trust can make such a difference to how a child copes with their illness.”

The charity also buys wigs to keep up with demand, so Karen asked for sponsorship when she had her hair cut, and set up a fundraising page to raise £350 to pay for a wig. That target was exceeded within 24 hours and Karen now has her sights set on raising £10,000 for the cause.

She says: “Obviously that is an incredible amount of money to raise, but the ACT Foundation which provides grants to enhance the quality of life for people in need, has offered to fund match whatever I raise up to £10,000 so anything people donate will be doubled.”

Karen’s hair was cut by hairdresser Lucy Marling although the new look won’t last very long once the chemo starts. She says: “At least when the last of it falls out I’ll know that my hair wasn’t wasted.”

If you would like to support Karen please visit her donation site at https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/kareng