Accountant shaves head in support of friend's cancer battle

In a heartwarming display of solidarity, a Shropshire accountant has embraced a bold new look after having her head shaved in support of her friend's courageous battle with cancer.

Karen Whitehead, owner of KEW Accountants in Telford, braved the shave with her friend, Lindsay Wilson, who is a barber at the Business Development Centre in Stafford Park.

Lindsay lost her hair during chemotherapy treatment for breast cancer, and Karen wanted to follow suit to show her support - asking Lindsay to brandish the clippers herself.

Karen said: “Lindsay is a close friend and I know losing her hair knocked her confidence, so I said if she shaved my head we could face the challenge together, and hopefully raise some funds for Breast Cancer UK in the process.

“I set a target of £500 and we have already raised over £4,000 which is just amazing.”

The head shave took place at Lindsay’s Barbers in Stafford Park on Wednesday, with colleagues from the Business Development Centre offering their support watching on.

Quite emotional

Following the shave, 54-year-old Karen said: “I think Lindsay, my colleagues and family have been more nervous than me, but I have been looking forward to it.

“It was a strange sensation at first, but I think it looks great - it feels light and airy. Who knows, I might decide to keep it like this!”

Lindsay, 39, said she felt quite emotional while Karen was sitting in her barber’s chair.

“Karen is right, I was definitely more nervous than she was and I still can’t believe she did it,” she said.

“Since the chemotherapy I have found it hard going out and thinking people are looking at me, but this has really helped with my confidence. It’s an amazing thing to do and means so much.”

You can donate by visiting Karen’s head shave just giving page here.

Breast Cancer UK

Breast Cancer UK is working to prevent breast cancer through education, scientific research, collaboration and policy change.    

Breast Cancer UK provides practical advice and tips on how we can reduce our risk. They campaign for changes to national health policies to support prevention, and fund research to help improve our understanding of how to stop the disease.