CARLTON has revealed that the #DoingItForDoc campaign has raised over $200,000 for the Peter MacCallum Cancer Foundation.
What started as a goal among Carlton players to raise $5000 in support of their captain Sam Docherty - who has just completed chemotherapy treatment following the return of testicular cancer in August - quickly became a wave of goodwill from the entire football community.
The fundraising total hit $201,671 after a $2000 donation from Carlton's charity group, the Blues Foundation.
All of Docherty's teammates shaved their heads for the cause, as did thousands of others to help raise the funds that will go into life-saving cancer research.
Docherty, who previously underwent surgery to remove a malignant testicular tumour in late 2020, expressed his gratitude to everyone who donated and showed their support.
"It is hard to put into words just how much the support has meant to me and my family," the 28yo said.
"This has certainly been a challenging time but to see all the photos and videos flooding through of people shaving their heads and being so generous with their donations, I really can't thank everyone enough – my teammates, the staff, all our members and supporters and the footy industry as a whole have been amazing.
"Peter Mac is an incredible organisation, who do so much every day to help people, and we really hope the money we have raised can go towards helping them and the heroic work they put into cancer research."
Fellow co-captain Patrick Cripps, who kick started the #DoingItForDoc campaign on his own social media channels, said he was proud of what the club and football community had achieved.
"We started this to show our mate Doc we are supporting him every step of the way through what he is facing – the amount of money that has been raised is beyond what any of us expected," Cripps said.
"Football clubs are special places for many reasons and this is no better example of that. The way the playing group, the staff, our members, supporters and wider footy community shaved their heads or donated money to support Doc and the Peter Mac Foundation really does show how powerful it can be when the football industry comes together."
On average, one person will be diagnosed with cancer in Australia every four minutes. Peter Mac is Australia's only public hospital solely dedicated to cancer, and is the home of Australia's largest cancer research group.
Peter Mac Chief Executive Professor Shelley Dolan said everyone at the centre was grateful for the support from the Carlton Football Club community.
"We can't thank the Carlton community enough – the players, supporters and the club – for their ongoing support of Peter Mac and our cancer research," Prof Dolan said.
"The amount raised is incredible and will go a long way to support our researchers as they search for new cancer treatments and better outcomes for people affected by cancer.
"We would also like to send our very best wishes to Sam Docherty and his family."
