LOCAL charity Beats Cycle for Hope has bulked up the Portland District Hospital’s (PDH) ‘wig library’ for cancer patients.

The nine new wigs, as well as other supplies for the library were paid for by donations from All Saints Outreach, the Uniting Church op shop, and a fundraising campaign from a group of Portland businesses - Intimate Apparell, Picnic Party co., and Portland Signworks - amounting to over $5,000.

PDH cancer nurse coordinator Kristy Ward says the wig library gives cancer patients a cost-effective way to feel more comfortable about their appearance while their hair grows back.

Cancer patients only need to provide a $50 deposit to take their pick of the 30 or so wigs of a variety of styles, which to buy outright cost upwards of $300, even into the thousands for higher quality wigs.

Along with their chosen hairpiece, patients also get a stand, brush, special cleaning products, and instructions on how to care for their wig while it’s in their care.

Ms Ward says it is important for the library to have a good range of wigs to be able to offer patients a range of colours and styles, as well as a fair number of them as when they are borrowed it can be a while before they are returned.

“They can stay out for a while before they’re brought back, it can be 12 months because [the patient is] undergoing treatment or they've undergone treatment and then they've recovered and then they've got a reoccurrence so they hold back on to it again…and sometimes people like to hold onto them for a little while after they have recovered as a bit of a safety blanket type thing.”

She says that especially for women going through cancer treatment, having a wig can be very important for not having to worry about standing out due to your appearance, which can have a big impact on confidence.

“When you’re going through treatment, feeling sick and nauseated. And you might have pain and you know, you've got all these other physical things that really impact your life.

“But there might be that one day that you actually feel not too bad, but you've lost your hair and feel really conscious about that, which happens a lot.”

“So to be able to put the wig on and go out and look normal and not be sick that day and not having it projected out there that you're unwell is really important.”

Portland woman Debbie Knight was diagnosed with breast cancer last year, and is now most of the way through the chemotherapy portion of her treatment, and has unfortunately lost her hair as a result.

She joined the wig library about three weeks ago, and says she is still getting used to her new hair and has only worn it in public three or four times so far.

“Everyone has said that they couldn't even tell it was a wig and that it looks so natural, so that’s given me some confidence to wear it out more.

“I’m also pretty excited to have beautiful thick hair like this, my natural hair isn’t quite the same,” she said.

For Ms Knight, the next step in her treatment is going to be radiotherapy, which she is going to have make daily drives to Warrnambool for, but she says the support from the cancer nurses at PDH has been excellent in what they are able to offer.

The wigs do have a shelf life, Ms Ward has had to recently retire a few of their older wigs due to wear and tear, so the new donation is a very welcome addition.

She says the support that the PDH cancer facility gets from Beats Cycle for Hope “doesn’t happen anywhere else”.

“We are so lucky in our region to have Rotary and Beats Cycle for Hope, I’ve had meetings with other districts and they are astonished at how much support we get from these groups and our local community.”

Beats Cycle for Hope Coordinator Frank Farnsworth from the Rotary Club of Portland, says they are “incredibly proud” of how much trust and support the Portland community has shown for the charity, which in recent years has resulted in larger donations from businesses and community groups.

“The money that we raise through our fundraisers and auctions mostly goes towards our random acts of kindness vouchers, but for these donations we have tried to find other programs like this so people have a clear way of seeing what their donations has gone towards,” he said.

The program is very much in line with the charity’s main aim, says Mr Farnsworth, which is to support cancer patients, carers, and family by giving them small opportunities to do things they enjoy, or make their lives easier.

The three Portland businesses coordinate a fundraising drive in October last year, selling sponsored stickers to go in their shop windows, and cookies to raise money for breast cancer.

Half of the $5,000 raised went to the McGrath Foundation which supports specialised breast cancer nurses, and Intimate Apparell owner Deb Edwards said it was an easy decision to decide to give the other half to Beats Cycle for Hope.

“To see what our money has helped, where these community donations have gone for people in our local area, it’s beautiful what they do.”