Carol Mifsud embarks on third Ride to Conquer Cancer to give thanks

The donor: Carol Mifsud

The gift: Raising $18,000 and climbing

The cause: Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in Toronto

When Carol Mifsud was diagnosed with a form of thyroid cancer five years ago, the prognosis was not good.

"I was diagnosed with Stage 4C follicular thyroid cancer," Ms. Mifsud, a former nurse, said from her home in Erin, Ont., northwest of Toronto. That stage indicates the cancer has spread to other parts of the body, she explained, adding: "It's incurable."

Since then, Ms. Mifsud, 52, has gone through surgery, several rounds of radiation treatment and tried experimental chemotherapy drugs. The disease and the treatments have changed her life, but she has still managed to participate in the annual Ride to Conquer Cancer, a two-day cycling trip from Toronto to Niagara Falls that raises millions of dollars for the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, where Ms. Mifsud has been treated.

Ms. Mifsud and her husband, Battista Vendittelli, have completed the 200-kilometre trip twice and they plan to do it again in June. So far, they have raised about $18,000 in total.

"I'm going to keep going until I probably collapse," she said when asked how many more Rides she'll be able to complete. "I will do whatever I can."