A GROUP of teenagers have shaved their heads in solidarity with a friend recently diagnosed with cancer.

Luke Constantinou, who lives in Canfield Gardens, West Hampstead, was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma in January.

The news came as a shock as the 15-year-old is a keen footballer on the books of Barnet Academy and had won club running medals just a few weeks before.

His mum Anna said: “It’s just been such a shock because of his age. There’s no one else his age when we go to the clinic. 

“But children do get cancer too. It’s not like he eats anything bad, and he keeps fit for football. It’s just very bad luck – that’s what they are saying at the clinic.

“He has taken it in a really positive way. He says to us all that it’s just a ‘six-month blip’. In fact, he’s dealing with it so well he’s been asked to talk to other young patients on the wards and tell them to stay positive.”

The friends before their turn with the barber's clippers

Just 1,500 people are diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma each year.

Luke’s friends, who attend Wren Academy, in North Finchley, where Luke lived before moving to Canfield Gardens, shaved off their hair to raise funds for Cancer Research.

To get involved in their fundraising campaign go to www.justgiving.com/Joel-Bateson