WHEN her teenage daughter was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer, Tasha Armour felt compelled to act.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
“To be told your child who just turned 16 years old has cancer is heartbreaking,” the Oak Flats resident said.
“Then to find out it’s incurable, has a lifetime span of recurrence and there is no research to treat it effectively was totally devastating.
“I just had to do something about it.”
Mikayla, now 18, was diagnosed with a rare ovarian cancer called Juvenile Granulosa Cell Tumour in 2016.
Late last year, Mikayla received the welcome news that there’s no evidence of disease.
However, her mother said this type of cancer doesn’t go into remission, so she will need ongoing monitoring throughout her life.
Ms Armour founded Rare Ovarian Cancer Incorporated (ROC Inc.) to ensure there is research and awareness.
Ms Armour said they are raising funds for research at Melbourne’s Hudson Institute of Medical Research to improve the way the disease can be identified, treated and managed.
A leading researcher on Granulosa Cell Tumours, Dr Simon Chu, from the Hudson Institute will conduct research into this disease in order to find the mutated gene(s) that occur in JGCT.
“Previously there has been no research into this disease which means there have been no answers in order to move forward for treatments or clinical trials,” Ms Armour told the Mercury.
“Granulosa Cell cancers are recurrent in nature.
“The recurrences are generally chemotherapy-resistant and tend to be highly aggressive with a poor prognosis, hence the critical need to find ways to treat this disease.
“Participants (in the research) range in age at diagnosis from babies to adult women, including Australia’s youngest case diagnosed at 11 months old to the oldest diagnosed at 52 years old.”
ROC Inc. gained charity status in February 2018, and has established a board and fundraising committee.
The initial research fundraising target set was $60,000, although with more participants now due to take part, Ms Armour said they needed to raise more than that.
Ms Armour will fly to Melbourne this week to present a $10,000 cheque, from funds raised so far, to kick-start the research.
February is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month.
A ‘Rock for ROC Family Fun Day’ fundraiser will also take place at the Lakeview Hotel Motel, Oak Flats.
The event is free entry and is on Saturday, February 9 from 12pm to 7pm.
It will include live bands, market stalls, pony rides, a silent auction and more.
For further details, visit the https://rocinc.org.au website.
Brendan Crabb
I'm a member of ACM's national property team, covering the Illawarra and South Coast. Based in Albion Park, NSW, I write about exciting, interesting or just downright quirky properties that have been listed for sale, major sales, market trends, auctions and more. One of my favourite aspects of being a journalist is I believe everyone has a story to tell. What's yours?
I'm a member of ACM's national property team, covering the Illawarra and South Coast. Based in Albion Park, NSW, I write about exciting, interesting or just downright quirky properties that have been listed for sale, major sales, market trends, auctions and more. One of my favourite aspects of being a journalist is I believe everyone has a story to tell. What's yours?
