In just under two weeks’ time, she will stand on the start line of the Kathmandu Coast to Coast, running not only for herself, but in memory of her friend Wendy Gerritsen, who lost her own battle with ovarian cancer.
“She was such a little adventurer and very active and outgoing. I told her that completing the Kathmandu Coast to Coast was on my bucket list because my dad had done it. She was so excited for me and very encouraging,” Harris said.
“Before she passed, I told her I was going to carry on her good work and try my best to complete the race. When I found out I got in, I cried the whole day,” she said.
In October 2023, Harris, a fit and active 47-year-old, had been experiencing some abdominal pain but didn’t think much of it. When the pain worsened, she went to the doctor expecting a prescription for antibiotics.
Within hours, routine checks escalated into blood tests and an ultrasound, as nurses realised something was wrong. Later that day, Harris was admitted to the gynaecology ward at Christchurch Hospital.
“I saw maybe 10 different doctors and nurses who asked me what felt like a million questions. Then they started encouraging me to get my husband to come down.
“The doctor told me, ‘we’re dealing with something a lot more sinister here, like cancer’.
“I just laughed at her. I said, ‘but I’m fine, I feel fine. I just came for antibiotics’.”
Over the next four weeks, Harris prepared for major surgery without knowing exactly what was wrong.
When she woke from surgery, doctors delivered the devastating news.
“We found cancer.”
Surgeons had removed tumours from her lungs, liver, bowel, stomach, ovaries and uterus.
She was diagnosed with stage four ovarian cancer and was given a year, maybe 18 months, to live if her body responded well to treatment.
“I was just in shock. I kept thinking about my daughters. I wanted to see them turn 21, get married and have kids. Nothing really prepares you to hear you’ve only got 12-18 months to live,” Harris said.
“I sold my business. I planned my funeral, all that really difficult stuff.”
Then everything changed. Harris was offered a medication called Olaparib.
There was no guarantee her body would respond well, but it did. Doctors told her she now had a 70% chance of living another seven years.
“My whole life changed. I thought, well what do I want to do with this time I’ve been given?”
Earlier this year, Harris became a qualified personal trainer and now works at Flex Fitness in Prebbleton, sharing her passion for movement and resilience.
She is determined to use her Coast to Coast campaign to raise awareness and funds for the Ovarian Cancer Foundation.
“Ovarian cancer is often called the ‘silent killer’. Most women are diagnosed at stage three or four, when the prognosis is very grim. There aren’t any routine screening tests like there are for breast cancer.
“I had literally no symptoms. That’s the thing with ovarian cancer, it’s so easy to miss. We need to be able to screen for it and find a way to detect it earlier.”
As Harris takes her place at the Kumara Beach start line for the Kathmandu Coast to Coast, with her family supporting her from the sidelines, she will carry with her the memory of her friend Wendy and the quiet victory of survival.
- The Kathmandu Coast to Coast runs from February 13–14, starting at Kumara and finishing at New Brighton Beach
-Allied Media
