SHOCKED to learn her friend had a rare form of cancer, Calne teenager Shanon Oliver decided to support her and raise cash for charity by shaving off her own hair.

When her friend Beatriz Santos, 16, was diagnosed in March with Ewing’s Sarcoma, a rare bone cancer, Shanon felt she had to do something.

She made up her mind to shave off her own hair as a sign of solidarity with her friend as she goes through chemotherapy, and also hopes to raise £500.

Karate-mad Shanon, of Westerham Walk, is due to have her head shaved on Friday, July 29, and will donate the money to Beatriz’s family, as well as to Marie Curie Foundation and the Bristol Children’s Hospital.

Her hair will be sent to the Little Princess Trust, which makes wigs for child cancer patients.

"I said that I think she is absolutely crazy and she should have just done a marathon but she wanted it to be extreme," said Beatriz.

"I am very happy she is doing it and she is really lovely. I have just done my eighth cycle of chemotherapy and I start radiotherapy on August 16.

"It is obviously not great but it has got to be done. I am going to be cutting off her hair when she does it. I have known her for a while but only got close quite recently.

"I am not going to finish chemotherapy until November and I still have more to do as well as radiotherapy. I will have my bone replacement in November and more chemotherapy after that."

The girls met at John Bentley School, but met again later through mutual friends and bonded over a shared interest in horses.

Beatriz had been ill for about 18 months before learning she had cancer. Ewing’s Sarcoma is a bone cancer, most commonly found in the pelvis, ribs or femur.

“I am a bit scared of losing my hair as it is a big deal but it is going to grow back,” said Shanon.

“I have not known Beatriz for very long, about a year, but we have become close in the last four or five months.

“I was obviously really upset and did not understand what was going to happen, as I have had my grandad taken by cancer as well.

“I wanted to do this when my grandad was alive. I had been researching it for about a week before I told my mum.”

Shanon has created a Justgiving page and for those who want to donate at: bit.ly/29wHQPI