Elizabeth McRae

Here's just one story explaining why this cause is so important:

Harrison was a healthy, active child, until one day out of the blue, “He wasn’t quite right, and then the next day he just stopped walking, and we knew something was very wrong,” said his father, Adam.

Doctors found something wrong with his blood, and when his parents were told it could be leukaemia “everything stopped.” As terrifying as that word was for them to hear, it got worse as Harrison’s case was unique, and it took many DNA tests to determine he had acute myeloid leukaemia (AML). They were lucky to get the right treatment after the right diagnosis, but it could have gone very differently if that work had not been done.

“Medical research is so important to get any answers for any genetic condition,” said his mum, Naomi. “For Harrison, the research done prior to him getting sick is what helped save our son. Research needs to continue so the next child diagnosed with a rare form of AML or any cancer—it can help them.”

I care about the 1 in 20 Aussie kids who face a birth defect or genetic disease, like cancer. Most people don’t know that cancer is caused by changes in genes—but almost everyone will be touched by it. So, the research you and I support today may one day help someone we know, someone in our family.

There’s lots of work to do, but there is also lots of hope.

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