Lisa has three grown children and lives with her husband Shane in Mildura, a 6-hour drive from Melbourne. Her and her husband have a morning ritual to get up early and go for a walk along the beautiful Murray River. In late 2019 & early 2020 it became increasingly difficult to go for those walks.

She says, “I was just in so much pain, those morning walks became impossible.”

When physio and pilates made no difference, Lisa went to her doctor. After a series of tests and scans she received the devastating diagnosis of Multiple Myeloma – A type of blood cancer.

For her more complex care needs and treatment, Lisa needed to make the long trips to Melbourne. While so far from the comforts of home, Lisa was lucky to have access to the patient accommodation program funded entirely thanks to our donors and participants in Dry July.

This meant Lisa and her husband had free accommodation right next to the hospital. As a regional patient this also meant Lisa didn’t need to spend any more nights staying in the more sterile hospital environment than was necessary for her monitoring. Lisa says,

“It was great to be so close to the hospital, and also Fawkner Park across the road for walks. Being away from home for a month was very isolating and it was such an incredible comfort to have a place that felt like home while getting treatment. Having a place for my husband to stay as well was amazing. It was one less thing to worry about!”

From numerous scans, tests and biopsies, to surgery to remove her L1 vertebrae which contained Multiple Myeloma lession, then following chemotherapy and a stem cell transplant, it’s been a long tough road for Lisa - and while things are looking good, she will still need further monitoring and medication into the future. 

Read Lisa's full story here: https://www.dryjuly.com/2021/lisas-story