My name is Alisha and I have a young child that is currently battling relapsed stage 3 Neuroblastoma in Westmead Sydney.

For the past 2 years my family and I have had to live interstate in accomodation whilst my son receives life saving cancer treatment because our Capital Territory DOESN’T treat paediatric oncology patients.

Local and surrounding families that have the unfortunate task of getting their child cancer treatment, must do so by receiving treatment at either Westmead or Randwick hospitals in Sydney. 

This causes immense pressure and strain on many families like us who must leave and lose jobs, leave homes, rip siblings out of school and routine and live in other states whilst their sick child receives the treatment necessary to overcome cancer which can at times mean many months away from their lives and creature comforts.

The consequences have had profound impacts on families such as financial hardship, relationship strain, isolation, mental heath difficulties, lack of support to name a few. Many families are forced to crowd fund to finance the overwhelming expense of living interstate.

I’m calling on the health minister and more importantly our Prime Minister to take action and begin working toward a pathway that leads to our local oncology families having the ability to receive treatment closer to home. In doing so, it will improve families quality of life collectively. 

Our hospital already has Adult cancer treatment facilities, it’s time that our future generations are afforded the same opportunity to receive treatments closer to home.