Helping people affected by cancer

Kellie's Story

How a clinical trial gave Kellie her life back

As a theatre nurse, Lara resident, Kellie Devlin has cared for hundreds of sick people throughout her career, but she never imagined she would become one of them.

Kellie recalls a dark day in November 2017 which marked the beginning of her journey. She was enjoying her morning coffee, standing in the kitchen watching the news when all of a sudden, she said it felt like she’d been shot in the leg. “I felt an intense pain in my leg, then I lost all feeling and fell to the ground. I thought I was having a stroke!”

She called out to her then nine-year-old daughter, Daisy, who was still sleeping to call her husband who had already left for work, and an ambulance.

“By the time I arrived at the...

Celine's Story

In June 2020 Celine, a 48-year-old mother of two children aged 10 and 13, began to experience some abnormal symptoms. Despite being young and healthy, Celine was feeling bloated, and her bladder felt unusually heavy.

“I visited a doctor who sent me off for an ultrasound which revealed a cyst on my left ovary. I was told to keep an eye on it, and just six weeks later, a second ultrasound showed that it had grown rapidly larger,” said Celine.

It wasn’t long before Celine was booked to undergo a laproscopy – a type of keyhole surgery – to remove the cyst.

“At this stage we weren’t worried, it was just supposed to be a routine surgery. I was young and healthy, so I didn’t think anything was going to be wrong,” said Celine.

The surgery wasn’t...

Nick's Story

Laughter really is the best medicine

Nicholas Capper likes to look on the bright side. As a comedian, he naturally skews towards the hilarious and sometimes absurd aspects of life. But his positivity was shaken in 2019 when he thrown a major curveball in the form of testicular cancer.

Nick recalls, “It was during lockdown and I was riding my mountain bike a lot. I felt some pain in my testicles, but I just thought it was from the bike riding.”

A friend had recently gone through testicular cancer so Nick thought it was best to visit his doctor, just in case. At 39, his doctor said it was unlikely there was an issue, but sent him for a scan, to be sure.

The scan confirmed Nick’s worst fears. Almost immediately he had his testicle removed...

Your Support for Canberra Hospital in 2021 has made a significant Difference to the Health and Wellbeing of the Canberra Community

Last year in 2021, our amazing community raised $40,000 through their commitment to Dry July and to supporting people in our community affected by cancer. This enabled us to support people affected by cancer in the Canberra community, through the Therapeutic Harp Program which brings the benefits of soothing music, floral arrangements to brighten the clinical spaces, and tea trolley service for patients and families at the Canberra Region Cancer Centre.

"Thank you so much for your cheerfulness and the harp's serene melodies - just what the doctor ordered. She has been depressed and your visit was highly valued."

“CoastCanCare provides vital programs which help people connect and provide each other with encouragement."

Central Coast Local Health District’s CoastCanCare wellness program is a local beneficiary of the national Dry July campaign, with donations helping to fund free wellbeing and recovery activities for cancer patients, their families and carers.

Wendy of Killarney Vale is one of many who has experienced CoastCanCare and felt better for it, after a lung cancer diagnosis in 2016.

“In the first year it kept me going. You look forward to talking to other people and learning from them and what they might be doing to help with their cancers and different ways of approaching things,” she said.

Wendy has taken part in a range of CoastCanCare’s programs including art therapy, tai chi, meditation, physiotherapy, Aboriginal basket weaving and...

Natasha's Story

For Natasha, life was go, go, go. Prior to March 2022, she was busy running her own business and managing a family with 2 young children.

In March 2022, Natasha was about to launch her online homeware store but a day before she was diagnosed with leukaemia, her world stopped! Natasha wasn’t feeling well, she thought she may have been suffering from long COVID as she previously had a bout of tonsillitis and COVID.

Natasha was also convinced she might be run down. She went to her son’s ‘ tae kwon do’ class and whilst there she tried a couple of star jumps but her heart was racing, so she went to the doctor - she was convinced it could be long COVID given her recent experience.

The doctor did a blood test that morning and at 4pm that day,...

Meet Kelli, BRICC'S Dry July 2022 Ambassador

In February 2012, Kelli Aggett finished breastfeeding her 3rd child, Poppi, who was 4 months old. A month later she noticed her left breast was not ‘right’– it was sore, red and swollen. Although her GP thought it was recurring mastitis, they sent her for a mammogram and biopsy. These indicated it was a rare inflammatory metastatic breast cancer.

Without a family history of breast cancer and with three kids under 4 years old, the then 38-year-old was very shocked with this news. The next couple of weeks were filled with appointments after appointments. The Wellness Centre at the Ballarat Regional Integrated Cancer Centre (BRICC) became a place for Kelli and her family to turn to for support and information, through a range of one-on-one...

Daniel's Story

“Finding Debbie and the STEEL Program has changed my life."

After being diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukaemia in February 2020 and requiring a bone marrow transplant in August 2020, I lost my confidence and sense of self. The thought of getting back into shape on my own was a terrifying one. I didn’t know where to start and was nervous to work out. I was concerned that the muscle loss I suffered due to treatment would mean I no longer had the foundations to attempt exercises I’d done many times before getting ill.

Thankfully I came across a post on one of the Leukaemia Group pages I follow where someone was sharing the fact that they’d come across the PINC and STEEL program in Sydney.

With Google’s help I came across a site that listed...

Leonie's Story

“My breast surgeon referred me to cancer rehab physiotherapist Hope Spencer at The Positive Health Project so I could improve my shoulder movement prior to breast reconstruction surgery, and I haven't looked back.”

Leonie was diagnosed with breast cancer Stage 2, Grade 2 in April 2020 just as the first wave of covid restrictions started. Despite having a good circle of support, getting a cancer diagnosis during this time meant that Leonie completed her oncology appointment and treatments on her own. She felt stressed, anxious, and very lonely. The pandemic had added even more stress to what a very emotional time, and Leonie was impacted by high levels of anxiety throughout.

Leonie had a single mastectomy with an expander and sentinel...