Firefighters shave their heads to extend support to their crewmate with cancer: "It means a lot"

In October last year, Christian Worby was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a rare form of blood cancer. At the time, the diagnosis came as a huge shock to Worby and his family.

"It was a bit of a shock," Colleen Worby, Christian's wife said, according to PEOPLE. "Wasn't something we were ever going to be prepared for."

In the hope to get treated for the condition, Worby is scheduled for an upcoming stem cell transplant at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester. "I wanted to shave my head before I went down to Rochester so that my kids would kind of get used to it for a couple of days before they saw me," the Coon Rapids firefighter from Minnesota said.  

However, Worby wasn't prepared for what his fellow firefighters had planned for him. When he turned up at work, he was pleasantly surprised to see everyone at the Coon Rapids Fire Station 1 follow suit and shave their heads as well.

"This was unexpected," he said. "It means a lot, yeah. Like these guys obviously care about me." Meanwhile, the Coon Rapids Fire Department posted a Facebook message about their grand gesture.

"We got to have a few laughs this afternoon shaving each other's hair in support of our coworker Christian who is off to Mayo in the morning," the department shared.

It's a sendoff of sorts for Worby, who is expected to stay at the Mayo Clinic for the next six weeks. "We're going to have to find our new norm and our new adjust as I'm kind of that solo parent at home for those six weeks," Colleen added. 

Battalion Chief Tim Gilsrud added that there will be "a void" at the fire station while Worby seeks treatment. "He makes us smile and laugh and we look forward to working with him," Gilsrud told KARE. 

"They definitely can make each other smile and forget those tough things," Colleen added. After the surprising show of support, Worby went on to share how he would miss being at the fire station. "I'm going to miss this job," he said. "I'm going to miss these guys."

Being diagnosed with cancer is one of the worst feelings a person can go through, and during an exceptionally tough time, all they need is support from people around them, however big or small. Honestly, this gesture might not make a difference to the firemen, but for Worby, this surely means the world.