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Father and son’s skin cancer awareness Lego Ideas set reaches 10,000 supporters.
The story of Damien MacRae and his quest to leave behind a Lego legacy for his son may get a bittersweet ending after all. The family’s Surf Life Australia set on Lego Ideas has reached the necessary 10,000 supporters to get the project in front of the company for development.
MacRae has stage 4 skin cancer. What began as a melanoma on his ear, caused by overexposure to the sun, has spread to aggressive and terminal brain tumors. His doctors gave him 6-10 weeks to live and, as he posted on the Lego site, his dying wish is to see this set complete.
The father and son originally launched their project in October, inspired by their life as Aussies and MacRae’s diagnosis. On April 14, MacRae posted a heartbreaking update. While he had been doing well with immunotherapy trials, his brain tumors had multiplied. He shared that his doctors gave him six to 10 weeks to live, saying that even six months would be miracle. At the time, the project had 3,000 supporters. In two days, they reached 5,000. In five days, they reached 10,000 – the final milestone in the Lego Ideas track.
Lego Ideas gives fans the opportunity to create sets and vote on their favorite projects. When a project gets 10,000 supporters, it enters the Lego review phase. The Ideas board evaluates the projects that reach this stage and select ones to become real sets.
The Surf Life Australia set has multiple meanings for MacRae. To start, it speaks to his childhood in coastal Australia. But it also raises awareness for the preventative measures like sunscreen and skin protection that can help everyone avoid melanoma. And, the set gives him something real and concrete to pass onto his son after he’s gone. Here’s hoping Lego takes it to production.
