A young cancer survivor from Jersey is donating her hair in memory of an “amazing” fellow patient who lost his battle with this illness earlier this year at just 25 years old.
Alex Collier died in March, two years after being diagnosed with a rare type of bone cancer known as spindle cell sarcoma in his femur.
Express reporter Antonia Rubio is cutting her hair this weekend in his memory and donating it to a charity that creates wigs for children who have lost their hair during cancer treatment.
The 27-year-old, who has been cancer-free for two years, was told she had thyroid cancer when she was 24 – within about a year of Alex receiving his own diagnosis.
She met Alex and his family through fundraisers for CLIC Sargent, a charity that she is an ambassador for, and also through Alex being a recipient of her Christmas Hamper initiative.
“There aren’t many young people in Jersey who have cancer,” explained Antonia. “So the majority of us end up knowing each other and connecting.”
“I wanted to do something in his honour”
Following Alex’s death earlier this year, Antonia decided she “wanted to do something in his honour”.
She has chosen to cut her hair and donate it to the charity, The Little Princess Trust.
Since Antonia finished her own cancer treatment in Southampton in 2023, she has been growing out her hair.
She “decided a long time ago” that, once it was long enough, she would donate it and try to raise money for charity at the same time.
When a medical student had her head shaved on stage at a fundraiser event Antonia hosted a few weeks after Alex’s passing, she “knew now was the time” to donate her hair.
Antonia is also fundraising for CLIC Sargent (Jersey), which supports islanders with cancer up to the age of 25.
She has already raised over £1,000, but Antonia explained her aim is “not just to raise money” but also to “raise awareness and get people talking about cancer in young people” and how it is taking the lives of young islanders.
“Cancer can affect anyone, no matter their age”
Antonia explained that she “only experienced minimal hair loss” during her cancer treatment, but The Little Princess Trust gifted wigs to many of her friends in the cancer community who “lost all their hair”.
Antonia’s friend and brain cancer patient Sophie Reid, who runs Stylistic Hair Studio, offered to cut Antonia’s hair free of charge after experiencing hair loss during her treatment.
Antonia said: “I hope that this fundraiser gets people talking about Alex and what an amazing person he was, whose life was taken too soon, showing that cancer can affect anyone, no matter their age.”
Alex’s mother Jackie Collier would like to see information about cancer – including signs and symptoms to look out for – implemented in school PSHE lessons, as it took a year for her son to get the right diagnosis.
Jackie explained: “In Alex’s case, he was just having occasional pain during the day and night. He was given anti-inflammatory medication and exercises to do.”
It’s the case with most cancers that the earlier it’s diagnosed, the better the chances of survival.
“Given Alex’s age and the fact he’d been skiing and had two active jobs, the doctors misdiagnosed his condition,” explained Jackie.
“It took almost a year before he was diagnosed with spindle cell sarcoma. People need to realise that teenagers and young adults can get the same cancers as older people.”
Other signs of spindle cell sarcoma include bone pain, broken bones, tenderness or swelling at the site of the tumour, trouble moving a joint near the tumour, fatigue, and generally feeling unwell.
DONATE…
You can donate to Antonia’s fundraiser here.