Billy’s big cycle in mum’s honour

A big-hearted boy will cycle the same difficult route his mum took on her chemotherapy journey to raise funds for the centre that is supporting them as a family through her illness.

Billy Lord (12) from Crosserlough is embarking on a 123km charity cycle - Billy’s Big Cycle for Cuan Cavan - from the Beacon Hospital in Dublin to the Cuan Cancer Centre Cavan on August 24 to raise vital funds for the local facility.

Billy is the son of John and Stephanie Lord and brother to James (17), Daniel (15) and Charlie (9). He is an avid cyclist and his iDonate page has already generated over €14,000 for the cause. He was inspired by his mother, Stephanie to do the cycle after she was diagnosed with breast cancer last December.

She made contact with the Cuan Cancer Centre shortly after the diagnosis and the staff there not only supported Stephanie through her illness, they also provided services for the whole Lord family to avail of.

It hasn’t been an easy journey for any of them but the mum and son duo are determined and focused on raising those much-needed funds so that “families like us” can avail of the centre’s services.

Billy is a sixth class pupil at Kilmore NS where his three other classmates are fully behind his endeavours. And because of his interest in cycling, he has made friends all over Ireland who also have his back.

“My school is a small enough school, there’s only four in my class but they are all behind me,” Billy told The Anglo-Celt this week.

“And because of my cycling, I have lots of friends from all over the country including from Dublin and Tipperary.”

Meanwhile, Billy involves himself in three bike disciplines - mountain biking, road and cyclocross. He races competitively and is quietly confident that following his 6am start on August 24 next, he will cruise into Cavan at approximately 1pm where there will be plenty of celebration to mark his achievements.

Billy and his brothers also found the support they received from Cuan Centre Cavan “great”  during their mum’s treatment. “Me and my younger brother Charlie did Creative Mindfulness at Cuan every Thursday and we love it,” Billy continued.

“This cycle is bigger than any other challenge I have done before. My dad is training with me and I’m at 70km now so my plan is to try and reach 80 or 90km before the big day.”

Diagnosed with breast cancer

“It’s because of me that Billy is undertaking the big cycle,” says Stephanie, speaking candidly about her cancer journey to The Anglo-Celt this week. She was diagnosed with breast cancer on December 15, 2023, and highlighted how from the moment of her diagnosis, “so many people advised me to make contact with Cuan Cancer Support Cavan”.

“From the minute I went there, the staff were just amazing. I really can’t put into words the support I got there. It’s just a fantastic facility and we are so lucky to have it in Cavan.”

Once Stephanie received her diagnosis, the Beacon Hospital immediately set about putting a plan in place to manage and treat the cancer. Stephanie recalls how “quickly everything moved”.

“On January 23, 2024, I had a full mastectomy and lymph node clearance,” she continued. “My mum passed away suddenly on January 12 so I found myself having a lot to deal with at that time. I suppose I felt like it was just one thing after another, after another. Anyway, I had my surgery and thankfully it went really, really well. I also recovered really well afterwards.”

Stephanie completed her course of chemotherapy at the Beacon on July 16 and will begin radiation treatment on September 9, which will last for three weeks.

Shock

“I did get a terrible shock when I was diagnosed. It was something that was totally unexpected for me; I was fit, healthy and playing football for Cornafean Mothers & Others. I was walking for an hour every day and really I had never felt as good as I did at that time. So, it did come as a huge shock; I never expected it. You always hear about this happening to other women but you didn’t ever think that it will happen to you; it happens to someone else," she recalled.

"But you just have to get on with it and, once I got to the Beacon, thankfully my cancer was detected early - a treatment plan was put in place really, really quickly. Once I had that plan in place I felt better.”

The worst part, Stephanie reveals, was the two week wait between the biopsy and getting the results. “I felt I had no control over what was happening because you don’t know for sure. Of course you have it in the back of your mind and, at times, you do think of the worst case scenario so I knew what might be coming down the line for me. Yet, still I didn’t know for sure until I got those results on December 15.

"But, as I said, once the treatment plan was put in place I was able to focus. The staff at the Beacon Hospital were amazing and everything happened very quickly from the time of diagnosis to having my surgery and starting the chemotherapy.”

Emotional impact

Stephanie says that, emotionally “a cancer diagnosis is very difficult to deal with”.

“I decided early on that it was best to be honest with the boys. I wanted to be able to talk about it openly at home; I didn’t want it to be a secret and I didn’t want them to be afraid.

"I suppose when we hear the word cancer, we think, ‘this is bad’ but there are so many treatments available nowadays for cancer. So from the get go, we were very honest with the boys about what was happening and it became part of the everyday conversation at home," she revealed.

The family have tried to keep things as normal as possible.

"Now, we have a bit of a dark humour about it all and sometimes we laugh and joke and sometimes they make jokes about me having no hair but that is the way we cope with this as a family. The boys can see me getting my treatment and they see now that cancer is actually not a scary thing.

"I’m going through my treatments and doing everything that is asked of me. The boys can see that and I think that is a very positive thing. I am going to be okay at the end of all this and that is what’s important.”

Billy’s Big Cycle

Stephanie is appealing to people to support Billy on the day of the cycle. “We’d like to ask people who see Billy along the route on August 24 to give him a bit of encouragement and support.

“There will also be an opportunity for people to come to the Cuan Centre in Cavan to meet Billy at the finish line. We are hoping for nice weather and a tail wind to bring him down the road,” she smiled.

If you would like to support the fundraiser, click here.