BY CHRISTOPHER HARRIS
Deputy Labor Leader Tanya Plibersek stopped by youth cancer support charity CanTeen in Newtown on Monday morning.
The Labor member for Sydney visited by the charity’s new headquarters to chat to people who had become involved with the youth service
CanTeen provides a raft of support to one thousand young people aged 12-24 who are diagnosed with cancer, as well as young people who have family members dealing with cancer.
“To be able to say to young people and their families, who have just received the worst piece of news ever, in their lives, that there is a place that you can go to be with other young people and be happy and relax is great,” Ms Plibersek said.
She said young people who had been diagnosed with cancer faced different challenges compared to older people, and it was important that charities such as CanTeen were supported.
“When I was the Health Minister we gave Canteen $18.2 million of funding because they had been doing a great job as a volunteer organisation, doing their own fundraising.”
She said that cancer affected young people differently psychologically and physiologically.
“There are about a thousand young people diagnosed with cancer each year, and it is the very last thing you expect to hear. You go from being a normal healthy 12 or 16 year old year old, and getting that diagnosis of cancer it is just devastating.”
“The reality is many young people go through treatment for a period of time and they get better, and having that message from people who have been through the treatment and got better is really important, and it’s really important to hear that firsthand.”
Jessada was half way through his HSC when he found out that he had cancer. Post treatment, he said that CanTeen’s support was invaluable because it was hard to go back to the life you had before. He couldn’t go back to school and didn’t know what to do.
“Yes it is a struggle, and yes it is hard, and it is not what you’re expecting. There is not a lot you can do but keep fighting, keep pushing, take it day by day.”
Anthony, was one of the organisers behind the Youth Cancer Summit, which last year brought together survivors and youth cancer experts from around the world to provide education workshops and discussion groups. It also allowed young people affected by cancer to talk about and share their experiences.
He said it was important for people to be treated as they otherwise would have been.
“When you’re going through that experience, the last thing you want is for people to treat you differently, and people do do that. I had friends that had lost contact, and I asked them why, and my best friend said it was because he didn’t know what to say. I would rather him say shit stuff than say nothing.”
