Georgia – “I’m a Lismore born girl. I just turned 17 yesterday. I went to Trinity High, loved my Soccer, I have a whole family of Soccer players. I grew up with two older brothers who were my role models. I watched them play Soccer so I wanted to play as well. I played for the Lismore Rovers. I loved school and loved hanging out with my friends.
I was 15, turning 16 and I noticed a bruise on the outside of my thigh not too far above my knee. It was a bit raised and it didn’t go away so I brought it to Mum and showed her. It didn’t hurt, I had no symptoms at all. She checked it out and we both thought it was just a bruise from Soccer. I was playing in an all boys team and bruises were part of the game. I was just living my normal life. We had an ultrasound just in case and that couldn’t tell us what it was. We had an MRI and that couldn’t tell us what it was either. I wanted it out anyway as it didn’t look good and I didn’t like everyone constantly asking what it was. We had a meeting with my surgeon and she said …’No point in doing a biopsy as you want it cut out anyway.’ So we did!
A week later we found out that it was a really rare cancer which is usually only known in older men. It’s called BPDCN (Blastic Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cell Neoplasm). The surgeon said to Mum..It’s not good news! I can’t remember exactly as it’s a blur now but I wouldn’t change it over anything. It has taught me life lessons I’m so grateful to know now.
They put us up in QLD Children’s Hospital two days after we found out. We had an Oncologist, every specialist, they were all there. We had all the support we needed in every way. We had tests to see if it was in my spinal fluid and bone marrow which fortunately was clear. That was just a year ago. We found out on the 1st October last year and I’m clear now.
I’m 100 percent donor cell. One of the many ways to make sure I would be clear of cancer cells is going through the process of bone marrow transplant. They had to find someone else’s bone marrow, 100 percent matched to mine which they inject into me and it takes over my immune system. My brother Nick who is a year older than me donated his bone marrow and for that I will be forever grateful. They completely erased my immune system which wasn’t strong enough to fight the bad cancer cells. I went through a week of intense Chemo and it was a week from hell. I felt so sick I couldn’t move. Some of the drugs you have to have are awful. You have to have 6 hourly baths because one of the Chemo drugs comes out in sweat and causes burns in places where you sweat like your groin and under your arms so you have to keep washing but you’re so sick you don’t want to move. You are attached to so much. It wasn’t the best fun.
During that period I lost my best friend Shari. She was diagnosed before me. She had a different type of cancer. We grew up together. That was devastating. That was one of the many fears of having the bone marrow transplant because she was having the bone marrow treatment and she had complications. I was about to start mine and she passed away 2 months before.
I knew I was going to do whatever was going to help me. One of the life lessons I learnt was everyone’s different. No two bodies react the same way, especially to treatment. We can all get completely different side effects. It’s why some people end up getting cancer and others don’t.
I had long hair which I lost. It wasn’t the easiest transition. We were up there for another 3 months after the full isolation period and we came home on the 1st June this year. It all happened in one year. I was allowed to start baby steps to seeing my friends and leading a normal life again.
Light the Night is a charity fund raiser event for the Leukaemia Foundation to support all blood cancers. You get a lantern. Blue is to support someone close to you who has been diagnosed, Gold is in memory of someone who has died from blood cancer and White for your own journey. My Mum, Sharis Mum and many other Mums who’s kids have been affected have organised this for this Saturday in Lismore. (see link)
You don’t know what people are going through. I looked like a normal girl but I was fighting for my life basically and I didn’t even know it at the time. Don’t compare yourself to others as we are all made differently. We all have our distinctive parts that make us who we are. Family and people you love mean the most. Focus on them! Life is just so precious so you can’t take it for granted. You don’t know what might happen tomorrow. The past is in the past, the present you need to live now and the future will come when it’s here. I’m a strong believer that everything happens for a reason and I was put on this earth to live the life that I was set to live and this was dealt to me. I had to grow up. I know it was tough for my parents. Your kids are everything and you can’t take away the hurt. That would be the hardest part as a parent.
I go day by day now. I mean it’s hard to not think about what could happen but sometimes you have to bring yourself back and think.. What am I doing now that could make this the best day possible? Live life as it comes.”