Art for Healing

A message from our family:

We really appreciate you being here and taking the time to read Pete’s healing story.

As a family we have experienced many wonderful times living in remote communities with the First Nations People of Australia for the humanitarian work that Pete's involved in.

It came as a harsh surprise to us when in December 2023 Pete felt a swollen lymph node in his neck that was later diagnosed as Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

And in 2024 Pete went through seven long weeks of intense radiation and chemotherapy. The side effects and shock to his body were extreme. He was unable to eat solid foods for 3 months and this took 20kg in weight from him. Pete chose to be private about his diagnosis and treatment. He needed to focus on a deeply personal level to manage the seriousness of what he was going through. 

The radical treatment has thankfully been effective, Pete will continue to be assessed by his specialist every six months for five years. Recovering physically and emotionally continues to be a slow and careful process. We are dedicated to Pete's on-going healing to ensure the carcinoma does not return.

As a consequence of his diagnosis and treatment Pete has for now stepped away from Traditional Cultural Practices - the much loved charity he founded in 2017.

And in Pete's wonderful perspective on life he says that there is an incredible gift in all of this and that is he is now on a healing pathway of mind, body and spirit; a pathway that before diagnosis he was too comfortable to step into.  

Through intense treatment the hospital system does a good job in clearing tumours. The tricky part is cancerous stem cells are not effected by chemo to the degree that they are gone completely. Patients are asked to come back every 3 to 6 months with no healing guidance between this time. 

This is where our work with your support comes in and that is to have private specialist treatment to clear the body entirely of any trace of ctc's (circulating tumour cells).

In order to meet these costs we have put together a series of limited edition photographs from Pete's private collection that are now available. Art for Healing is an exchange of something beautiful for your home, workplace, or as a gift to a loved one. 

With your support our goal is to cover specialist care for the year ahead. 

We hope you can join us.

With our loving gratitude.

Nikki, River & Sol McConchie.