Help Greta Recover from Spinal Surgery & Support Her Family

Hi!!

My name is Monique, and I’m fundraising for someone who means the world to me—Greta, my bestie of 30 years. We’ve been inseparable since we were just 4 years old (a memorable year in her life as you're about to learn), and through every chapter of life, she’s been like a sister to me.

At just 4 years old, Greta's life changed forever when she and her family were diagnosed with a rare hereditary cancer called Von Hippel-Lindau (VHL). This cruel disease, a neuroendocrine cancer, causes tumors and cysts to grow throughout the body. Since that day, Greta has fought relentlessly — and heartbreakingly, she’s already lost her beloved mum, Toni, and her eldest sister, Melinda, to this same illness.

Over the years, Greta has endured more than most ever will: multiple eye surgeries, spinal surgery in 2009, and a partial kidney removal for renal cell carcinoma (RCC) in 2011. Most recently, in early April 2025, she has undergone two emergency spinal surgeries within a single week to remove a hemangioblastoma that was dangerously compressing her spinal cord and threatening paralysis.

Though the surgeries were successful in removing the tumor, they’ve left Greta with a spinal injury. She is currently in hospital, waiting for a rehabilitation bed, unsure of how long her recovery will take or if she’ll ever fully regain her independence. She is now managing incontinence — a condition that will bring ongoing, expensive medical supply needs — and Greta will be unable to return to work for the foreseeable future.

Amid this, Greta has had to pause taking Belzutifan, a newly PBS-approved drug that had helped to shrink a tumor in her kidney, preventing another major surgery last October. But the spinal tumor damage came too fast for the drug to stop — surgery was her only hope.

While Greta fights to heal, she is deeply missed at home by her husband, Lei, and their three beautiful children, aged 13, 12, and 9. The family depends on both incomes, and this emergency has left them not only emotionally overwhelmed but financially stretched thin.

I’m reaching out on their behalf, asking for your help. Donations will go directly toward Greta’s rehab, medical supplies, ongoing treatment, and support for her family during this incredibly difficult time.

Anyone who knows Greta knows her strength, warmth, and unshakable positivity. She’s always put her family first and faced every challenge with courage — now it’s our turn to stand by her.

Thank you for reading, sharing, and supporting. Even the smallest donations will go a long way and be incredibly appreciated.

xx