Community & Business
12 May, 2026
Building a buzz for cancer research
Five years ago, Mareeba local Amy Braes said her final goodbyes to her “beautiful mum”, Karen.
A mother herself, a communications consultant by occupation, and a popular member of the Mareeba Shire Council, Amy had watched Karen Braes bravely fight the Stage 4 ovarian cancer diagnosis in April 2016 with dignity and positivity.
The current survival rate for 49% of women diagnosed with ovarian cancer is five years.
“My mum beat this statistic by one month.”
In the decade since Karen’s diagnosis, there have been steps forward in research, but the symptoms are vague and difficult to diagnose.
“There is still no early detection test (no pap smear, blood test, or ultrasound), which means women are often diagnosed at a late stage,” Amy said.
Which is why on Friday at 10am - on World Ovarian Cancer Day, and just before Mother’s Day - the baby-faced mum had her hair cropped in a live online feed to mark the most ambitious fundraising campaign ever launched in Australia for the Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation (OCRF).
With her “Start the chat. Build the buzz. Overcome ovarian cancer” campaign now official, and sporting her own buzz-cut, Amy intends to raise $1 million by this time next year.
“One million dollars is a big, ambitious goal, but ovarian cancer needs big, ambitious action and I believe that now is the time,” Amy said.
“There is a dedicated community of volunteers, researchers and supporters who have been pushing to change outcomes for ovarian cancer for decades, and it would be an honour to ‘build the buzz’ around that.”
Even before Friday’s hair purge, her Facebook page was bringing the results, raising $3,640.
“The outpouring of love and support has already been beyond what I could have expected, with donations flowing in,” she said.
“OCRF received the first donation through ‘Start the chat. Build the buzz.’ just seven days ago.
“It was made even more special because it was from my teenaged daughter, Ava.”
And does the buzz feel better?
Amy said she “certainly feels lighter” with her hair gone, but it was much more than that.
“It feels profoundly personal as I honour my Mum’s experiences when she lost her hair due to treatment.
“I am also very much aware that there are women in Australia, right now, who are undergoing treatment and who have had no choice but to have a buzzcut.
“I will wear this buzz-cut with all of them in my heart.”
Over the next 12 months, Amy will be taking her campaign national through the power of social media and support from her community.
“This campaign is a fundraising and awareness campaign in equal measure so reaching across Australia is crucially important.”
She still remembers her family’s absolute shock to learn there was no early detection test for ovarian cancer.
“That’s still the case today,” she said. “There’s still a long way to go to improve outcomes against what is the most lethal cancer for women.
“That’s why I’m asking our local communities to hit the ‘Follow’ button on Facebook or Instagram and invite their friends to do the same, it will have a multiplier effect across the country.
“I am also planning a couple of special ‘Start the chat. Build the buzz.’ events, both online and face-to-face. So, watch this space!”
The OCRF is the largest independent funder of ovarian cancer research in Australia and is 100% community funded.
OCRF fundraising and partnerships director, Georgie Herbert, said community support and campaigns like Amy’s were vital in enabling critical research needed to “find the disease earlier and treat it more effectively, so women like Karen are not lost too soon”.
“We are blown away by Amy’s ambition and passion for the cause,” she said.
Donations to Amy’s $1 million project can be made through the OCRF website link at https://www.ocrf.com.au/fundraise/start-the-chat.-build-the-buzz.-overcome-ovarian-cancer or by searching Google for ‘Amy Braes Start the chat. Build the buzz’.
