Tearaway T-Shirt Success Funds First Kiwi

Tearaway T-Shirt Success Funds First Kiwi Breast Cancer Research Trust Fellowship

Booming sales of designer t-shirts this year have funded New Zealand's first Breast Cancer Research Trust fellowship with $505,000 now being ploughed directly into top-flight research into the disease.

Money raised directly from the sale of the t-shirts created by top fashion designers and celebrities through Glasson's, including Kate Sylvester, Petra Bagust, P Money, Stacy Daniels and Kelly Osbourne, has enabled the appointment of Dr Nicole McCarthy as the first Breast Cancer Research Trust fellow at the University of Auckland Medical School.

The t-shirt campaign has become one of the most successful fund raising ventures ever. The success is due to the huge public acceptance of the t-shirts and the dedication of the three committed parties involved, Glassons, the Breast Cancer Research Trust and the designers and celebrities who have given their talent, name and time to help fight this deadly disease.

Dr McCarthy, who is officially welcomed to New Zealand at a special function tonight, was staff medical oncologist in the Division of Oncology at the Royal Brisbane Hospital. She is a well-respected researcher having worked at the National Cancer Institute in the United States and has been involved in the running of numerous breast cancer clinical trials.

Glassons Group Managing Director Cliff Kinraid says, "Glassons is delighted to have been involved with the Breast Cancer Research Trust in a t-shirt campaign that has raised in excess of $800,000 in the past two years.

"The Glassons team is committed to promoting this cause with a passion and we look forward to embarking on our new campaign," says Mr Kinraid.

Dean of the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences Professor Peter Smith says the Fellowship's collaborative structure provides a powerful knowledge base for breast cancer research in New Zealand. It also builds on existing strengths in oncology research.

"Dr McCarthy's experience and research in this area are of a high quality and will enable us to advance the opportunity to establish a world class research programme in New Zealand," says Professor Smith.

Mimi Lloyd, chair of the Breast Cancer Research Trust, an organisation dedicated to funding research into breast cancer in New Zealand women, says Dr McCarthy's appointment will make a significant difference to New Zealand's fight against breast cancer.

New Zealand currently has one of the highest rates of breast cancer in the world, with one in 10 women developing this devastating disease in their lifetime.

© Scoop Media