Andrew wasn’t worried. His GP had ordered some blood tests, but at 45, he was fit, active and on top of his health. He expected the all-clear.

Instead, he was told he had advanced prostate cancer and needed surgery to save his life.

Andrew, a builder by trade, went straight into fix-it mode.

“I don’t think I was too emotional,” he says. “I just wanted to get the surgery over and done with and move forward.”

It was a different story for his wife, Jo, and their two teenaged children, Ethan and Eliza.

“It was a massive shock,” Jo remembers. “We told the kids point blank what was going on, and Eliza said, ‘is Dad going to die?’”

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer among Queensland men — Andrew, at 45, was far younger than most.

He opened up about his diagnosis, and found that several friends and colleagues had been through the same thing.

It’s the generosity of supporters like you that helps gives men like Andrew access to the Da Vinci Robotic System — technology that gives surgeons extraordinary precision, and the best possible chance of making it home.

“I knew there was nothing better in Australia than robotic surgery,” Andrew says. “It was reassuring that an expert surgeon would be controlling the precise movements of the robot to give me the best chance of preserving the nerves around my prostate. The moment I walked in the door at The Wesley, I felt like I was in good hands.”

The cancer was successfully removed, much to the relief of Jo, Ethan and Eliza.

Today, Andrew’s back on the tools and back to being the fit, active father and husband he was before his diagnosis — just with a lot more gratitude for it.

Andrew and Jo are looking forward to making memories with their children in the years ahead.

“The money people donated in the past helped save my life,” Andrew says simply.

That’s what your generosity helps enable. The surgeons with the tools they need. The technology that makes precision possible. The men who, like Andrew, get to go home. Thank you.

Ethan, Eliza, Jo and Andrew.