Help Kaleena in her fight against Breast Cancer

CANCER, the one word no one ever wants to hear or have someone close to them go through.

This month shines light on Breast Cancer Awareness and I want to take this opportunity to honour my close friend who is currently battling Cancer to save her life.

According to the Australian Government Cancer Statistics, one in three women in Australia will develop Breast Cancer in her lifetime. Each year, there are an additional 14,181 cases of Invasive Breast Cancer. Apart from non-melanoma Skin Cancer, Breast Cancer is the most common form of Cancer for women in Australia.

In April, at the young age of 32 years old (Yes you can say it ‘That’s too young’) Kaleena was diagnosed with Invasive Ductal Carcinoma (Stage 3/Grade3). A type of Breast Cancer that is very aggressive and has the ability to spread quickly. As you can imagine the last couple of months have been filled with anger, confusion, tears, tests and not to mention the psychological effects, followed by multiple tumour removals along with a strict treatment plan to help my dear friend survive.

Aggressive treatment is necessary in order to fight this cancer and Kaleena has already commenced or is undergoing the following tests & procedures:

- Ultra sound

- MRI

- Breast biopsy

- Mammogram

- Lymph node biopsy

- Blood work

- Bone scan

- Echo scan

- CT scan

- Egg Retrieval for Fertility

- Port Incision

- Lumpectomy

- Nightly blood clot injections

- Fortnightly Zoladex injections

- Steroid injections with infusions

- Chemotherapy (16 rounds)

- Blood transfusions (Due to low Neutrophil levels)

- Counselling

Then to contribute to this horrendous ordeal after her first chemotherapy treatment Kaleena received her Genetic Testing results, where testing determined her to be positive for BRCA1 a Genetic Mutation. This means that she has a 77% increased chance of inheriting Breast or Ovarian Cancer in her lifetime. This Genetic Mutation can also be passed down to children, which was extremely confronting for Kaleena as she has a 4 year old of her own. On a positive note, our belief is: Knowledge is Power.

Since the diagnosis, Kaleena was told by her Oncologist that it would be best that she didn’t continue teaching due to having a higher risk of infection and sickness. This has already become evident with her vulnerable immune system recently taking such a hard hit.

Having taught for 11 years and being a Middle School Coordinator, this was mentally challenging for Kaleena to accept with such a love and passion for the role and I know she misses her students and fellow colleagues wishing for the day that she can return to the classroom. However, she understands that her health is a priority and is dedicated to be present in her little boy Raiden’s world for as long as possible.

Her partner David is the Inclusion Support Practitioner at O’Loughlin Catholic College where Kaleena worked. He also works another part time job and takes her to all appointments when he can and continues to take great care of Raiden supporting him whilst his mummy is unwell.

Throughout this journey Kaleena has been a true warrior and continues to stay strong with a contagious humour & drive for her gorgeous little boy. She emphasises on her goal to obtain the utmost normal & structured life for him including attending all of his OT and speech appointments for his Autism. She is determined to focus on a positive mindset & understands how much she has to be grateful for.

Her family surround her with light and love as she prepares herself for the struggles ahead whilst her friends have realised that you must cherish life just that little more. We are prepared to do everything possible to support her while we all battle this cancer marathon together.

By starting this page our hope is to raise money for Kaleena's treatments, surgeries and financial set back along with a place to share updates, ideas, and progress throughout this journey. We will be updating everyone frequently on her progress as it unfolds.

All the proceeds are tax deductable and will go towards her care while she focuses on healing and not the stresses of life’s financial struggles.

The fight against cancer is one that no one should ever have to go through but when someone does you would want to know that the community is doing whatever they can to help support.

By offering her financial support, as well as prayers and good thoughts I know she will find her way through this difficult time with grace.

Next year procedures will include:

- Radiation (6 weeks)

- Double Mastectomy

- Reconstruction

So many of you continue to offer your help & support and we thank you from the bottom of our Support Squad hearts. Because of this, I thought it only made sense to create this page, so we can all assist with keeping this remarkable women Un-BRCAble.

The truth about cancer is the financial burden can be just as devastating as the physical and emotional impact.

We send you our love and deep gratitude for helping our beloved warrior win this battle as she continues to fight for a day when she can look in the mirror & say “I beat this and I won”.

Thank you and God Bless.