By Robecca Leyden.

Catherine Cooke is a remarkable woman. You can see that as soon as she enters a room. For me, that room was an outdoor marquee at a fundraiser for Dress For Success earlier this year. I was there as a guest of Bare PR, where the director, Katie, had donated some of her time to help pull the event together. DFS is a charity I deeply believe in and I had donated a bunch of clothing. I found out later that Catherine had generously donated the location of the charity lunch, Allely Estate.

Katie was one of several women who had come together to support Catherine, who was undergoing chemotherapy and might be too ill to attend. Then, about half way through, a woman walked in with no hair, no wig, bright lipstick, a hot pink dress and a smile that was beaming. She was radiating a warmth and kindness that you could almost see as she made a bee-line towards our table. The entire time we spoke, she clutched my hand in her’s and I could feel how physically weak she was from her chemo and cancer itself. I knew I wanted to do what I could to help.

Catherine is one of around 350 Kiwi women diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer each year. The only targeted treatment, the drug Keytruda, is unfunded for early-stage cancer like Cooke’s.It is fully funded in 40 countries, including Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom.

Pictured: Both Images of Catherine Cooke by Supergibo Photography.

Keytruda, an immunotherapy drug, is currently the only targeted treatment shown to be effective against TNBC when used alongside chemotherapy. Why has this drug not been funded in New Zealand yet?

I was able to chat with Catherine about the importance of this drug and it’s limited access for Kiwi women.

Hi Catherine. Thank you so much for chatting with me while you’re in such heavy treatment. What you’e doing for Kiwi women is extremely courageous. Let’s start from the beginning.

Who are you and what do you do?

I am a ‘strong woman’ who understands life adversity but have a strong moral compass to helps others before myself.  My life has been built around advocacy for the vulnerable.  I am one of eight children, from a childhood of adversity which shaped me to be hardworking.  I lost my hearing in my left ear at 27 years but did not let that define me.  Raised two gorgeous children both in service roles in NZ – police and navy – aged 26 and 23 years and they are my heart.  I’ve literally helped 100’s and 100’s and 100’s of business owners across NZ for a good part of two decades with holistic business advisory – meaning you won’t get a point solution advice from me but a full consideration of where you and the business is at including blindspots.  Through experience life adversity I champion for vulnerable people, and I am driven & passionate to achieve what I set out to do.  Since I was a teenager at school I have been involved in helping others.  I ran Fashion Shows for my school – Birkenhead College with one weekend bringing in nearly $80,000.  Since 2022 I have orchestrated/initiated/driven a fundraiser from Allely Estate that yielded $76k for Muriwai Residents from the storms – blog here, and orchestrated/initiated/driven two fundraisers for Dress for Success here and here . One for Breast Cancer Foundation NZ which is here as well as raising awareness for BCFNZ through my petition, social posts and NZ Herald article.

As a woman who has built many business in her lifetime and always advocated for women; how do you think that’s shaped you as you advocate for this drug?

I know how to story tell with facts and I know how to get a wide reach to all corners of NZ by doing so.  Adding my face and my story makes it real and relatable.  And facts are truth.

Why is getting the drug funded so Important? Tell me about the current situation.

With TNBC (triple negative breast cancer), unlike other cancers it is non responsible to many other cancer medications and is aggressive.  As stated in my petition ‘keytruda’ is the only responsive immune drug for TNBC.  The drug is funded in 40 countries including Australia and recommended by Pharmac Advisors to be funded in NZ nearly two years ago.  They only recently funded advance TNBC and with strict criteria on what advance sizing, etc has to be – funding advance only makes no practical or business sense.  If you funded early-stage you would have less to fund in advance long term and you would have less burden on the Health System. I’ve written to Min. David Seymour over my concerns that early-stage triple negative breast cancer is unfunded.

Pictured: Catherine Cooke was diagnosed with grade 3 triple negative breast cancer just before Christmas 2024.

What so do you think needs to happen moving forward?

We need to prioritise life for those who are diagnosed or yet to be diagnosed.  They have contributed to society in greater ways that we are not celebrating them for.  They are dying from not being offered ‘keytruda’ as an option because they don’t ‘qualify’ and only now on my crusade are they realising don’t ‘qualify’ did not give them the opportunity to self-fund or burden themselves with debt.  Those who have realised they could self-fund are burdened with debt and guilt for placing their family in debt or embarrassed by me to be asking for help from others.  My friend and daughter placed up a GIVEALITTLE page for me as well as I have to sell my home.  

How has your cancer diagnosis affected you and your family?

It is crippling us financially.  The economic climate was bad enough and this.  They hate seeing me going through the side effects of cancer and chemo.  They cry for me.

 What has been the most significant change you see in yourself now that you are living with cancer? 

How vulnerable I am.  I am a strong woman, but it reduces me to continuous tears, fears and concerns of whether I will pull through.  I have a very hard hill to climb with an aggressive cancer, but I am also turning my vulnerability into strength to help others.  It doesn’t take away being scared for the future and what that maybe or how long I will be in that future but having a focus helps.

What is a typical day like for you now? During this time, what is of most importance to you?

It is day by day, week by week.  Some days I am literally bedridden, and bathroom bound and other days keeping energy reserved for what I really need to do and that is sometimes not what I want to be doing.  That’s my most frustrating part is I am someone else right now, not me.  What’s most important to me is championing the rights for all TNBC patients to have what they deserve to give them the best chance to live based on statistics and to reduce the burden on them and the health system.  The stats for Keytruda and the chemo recipe for TNBC is proven – I also want to be on the positive side of that too and be here for my children. 

At 53 years I have so much more to do.

These images were taken on 01/01/25. I was diagnosed on the 20/11/24 and started chemo 17/12/24 – the week after Christmas. I wanted to get some feel good photos. I literally lay down after the shoot and my hair went to dreadlocks. Massive clumps falling out and my head felt so itchy from the chemicals/chemo. I was devastated it was so confronting. Images by Trinity Williams – @magickmatter.

If people wanted to help, how could they?

• Sign and share my petition – 2 days to go.
• Kindly donate or share my Givealittle page.
• Never leave anyone behind.

Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer to affect New Zealand women – every year around 3,500 women will be diagnosed. Please see your GP if you notice anything irregular in or around your breast tissue and get regular check ups. Head over to breastcancer.org.nz for more information.