How this young widower turned pain into purpose in the fight against brain cancer

Antoine d’Haussy’s wife Charissa Chau, the love of his life and mother to their three-year-old son Aymeric, died in January 2026 at just 40 years old, leaving him in a world of pain. He turned his grief into a meaningful way to celebrate her life, and hopes others will find solace in turning to his solution.

His drive stands out in the world of health fundraising. Most personal campaigns understandably spring from the need to cover medical bills, and d’Haussy, 46, indeed set up his to sustain his family through the financial upheaval of a terminal diagnosis. But he also set it up to raise funds for laboratory research and accelerate finding a cure, so other families did not suffer the same loss.

For the d’Haussy family, a subtle warning flashed in May 2024. Chau, a dynamic Net-a-Porter marketing executive, had fleeting speech difficulties. At the time, the couple dismissed it as simple fatigue from new motherhood and a demanding career.

But in July that year, her trouble speaking returned. An MRI showed a 3cm (1.2-inch) brain tumour. Glioblastoma was the confirmed diagnosis.