Every morning in October, Whāingaroa Raglan’s steepest track will turn into a catwalk with a cause. Dressed in the brightest, funkiest frocks, Esther Keown and Ciaran Lannon will hike Karioi to raise money – and much needed awareness – for ovarian cancer.
Part of the national Frocktober campaign, the fashion-forward pair’s climb is one of many quirky fundraisers happening around the country to back the Ovarian Cancer Foundation.
“People can come for the walk or get involved but basically we just want to raise awareness and money,” Esther says.
The pair first connected behind the counter at Raglan Roast earlier this year. Chatting between coffees, they discovered they had both previously taken part in a ‘Show Up’ fundraiser for the Ovarian Cancer Foundation.
Their shared experiences turned into a shared mission to take on the maunga and tackle some of the biggest misconceptions surrounding ovarian cancer.
Esther was diagnosed last year with a rare form of stage one ovarian cancer after seeing her GP at the Raglan Medical Centre with what seemed like common issues experienced by women – abdominal pain, bloating, and discomfort that could easily have been written off as IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) or bad periods.
“Because my GP pushed for an ultrasound, we caught it early, and now I want every woman to know the signs and keep insisting on answers,” she says.
For Ciaran, the cause is deeply personal. He lost his mum to stage four ovarian cancer in late 2023, after nearly two years of treatment that included aggressive chemotherapy and major surgery.
“Mum went to the doctor at the end of 2021 because she was feeling burnt out and experiencing indigestion,” he says. “Our family had never heard of ovarian cancer, so we had no idea what we were facing. We were all around her, supporting her how we could in her final months.”
It didn’t take much to convince Ciaran to join Esther in her Frocktober Karioi challenge. “I always think about how resilient and strong Mum was during the whole process, which is a huge motivation for me to join Esther.”
Unlike cervical cancer, which has a regular screening programme, there is no routine screening test for ovarian cancer. Instead, women are generally diagnosed after presenting to their GP with symptoms, with one in two Kiwi women receiving their diagnosis in an emergency department.
“Quite often it gets dismissed for other things without doing proper investigation,” Esther says. “Once women know the signs and symptoms, they can really advocate for themselves – if one GP brushes it off, go to another and keep pushing.”
Now a lived experience support administrator, Esther is passionate about advocating for women and improving support for those navigating the disease.
“I honestly didn’t even know the Ovarian Cancer Foundation existed, so I’m an example of how that needs to change,” she says.
Her experience has also reinforced the importance of knowing the symptoms and acting on them.
Symptoms can include bloating, eating less and feeling fuller, abdominal, pelvic or back pain, needing to pee more often, tiredness, indigestion, changes in bowel habits, and abnormal vaginal bleeding or discharge.
The Ovarian Cancer Foundation recommends visiting your doctor if you experience any of these symptoms for longer than four weeks.
Show your support for Esther and Ciaran’s Frocktober Climb for Change at frocktober.org.nz/esther-keown. Find out more about ovarian cancer at ovariancancerfoundation.org.nz.
