Friends rally to give Chris hope
AS A quiet, unassuming, gentle family man Chris Brugger doesn't like a lot of fuss.
But if his mates have anything to say about it people will be hearing his name mentioned a lot more often as they launch a special campaign known as 'My Name is Chris'.
Mr Brugger has been fighting cancer for seven years.
A few days before Christmas the proud father of two small boys, Tomas, 4, and Liam, nine months, and husband of Naomi, discovered that the harrowing treatment he went through in 2014 had not worked and the Hodgkin's Lymphoma was back.
His doctors informed him his best chance of obtaining remission now is an expensive drug known as Brentuximab Vedotin, which is not listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) for use with Hodgkin's.
The initial doses and associated costs are estimated to be in excess of $100,000.
"This is my third relapse, my fourth battle," Mr Brugger said.
"Cancer has taken a lot from me and my family. There is so much more to fighting cancer than just showing up to chemo, it takes a giant part of your life and you cannot get it back."
"I missed the birth of my second son because of this cancer and didn't get to meet him until he was five days old."
The previous seven years have been very expensive for the Brugger family, who have put everything they have in to the ongoing battle.
"We have had some assistance in the past from Can Assist and the fundraiser in 2013, however we know how many families locally are fighting cancer and need financial aid from charities such as Can Assist so we have tried to handle the expenses on our as much as possible," Mr Brugger said.
"But this is such a huge amount of money and we are at a point now where we have no choice but to ask the community help us raise this money. This treatment is my best chance of survival, the best drug for my circumstances."
Alan Barton is one of Mr Brugger's mates who is determined to help him see his sons grow up.
Mr Barton said the My Name is Chris online campaign was about more than just raising the much-needed funds.
"I'm greatly inspired by Chris. We almost live parallel lives. We've both been married to amazing women for over a decade, we're both only just into our 30s and we have young kids," he said.
"I can't stand idly by and watch this happen. Chris and Naomi are a proud and private couple, but they need our help and there is a sense of urgency because bills will start coming in soon.
"The idea for the campaign came from the need to give cancer a name and deliver a message.
"We also want to start a petition to get this drug on the PBS list and encourage people to share their own stories. We want to get people talking about cancer."
The My Name is Chris campaign has already attracted plenty of attention, with more than 1300 Facebook likes received in the first 24 hours.
Several initiatives are in the works including My Name is Chris T-shirts which will be available for sale in coming weeks. For more information please visit www.mynameischris.com.au and like on Facebook at www.facebook.com/mynameischrisAU