WHEN Rachel Chard had her long hair shaved off during cancer treatment, her husband knew exactly how to show his support.

Luke, 32, turned up at the Tesco store in New Milton, where he is the bakery manager and Rachel is a customer assistant, totally bald.

Rachel, 38, said: “He just arrived at work one morning with his head shaved and said ‘You are not the only one now!’”

Now on the road to recovery, Rachel is leading a team of Tesco staff taking part in Cancer Research UK’s Race for Life in Bournemouth on Sunday, June 15.

Rachel was diagnosed with breast cancer in September last year after finding a small lump in her breast, undergoing chemotherapy before a lumpectomy.

After her second course of chemotherapy Rachel’s hair started to come out in clumps. She arranged for a hairdresser friend to cut it short but then decided to shave it off.

She said: “Our daughters had a go. It helped my daughter to cope with me losing my hair to make it a bit of fun rather than a drama.”

Rachel, who has worked at the New Milton store for 18 years, has now been given the all-clear although she is about to embark on a precautionary course of radiotherapy.

She said her hair was “growing back as fluff on my head” and is now concentrating her efforts on raising money for the Race for Life.

She added: “It is going to be a very special day for me.”

Enter Race for Life today at raceforlife.org or by calling 0845 600 6050.