My Mum was diagnosed with Leiomyosarcoma

I would like to introduce you all to my mum. Her name is Rochelle Fisher and she is caring, sensitive to the feelings of others, generous, determined, and a big fan of the colours red and purple.

Growing up, she formed the backbone of our home – and she still does - offering us her time, wise counsel, and a helping hand … often whether we wanted it or not.

In 2016 mum was diagnosed with Leiomyosarcoma. I hadn’t heard of it either. It’s an aggressive uterine cancer which we stumbled upon unexpectedly. Since then, her life was turned upside down. She stopped working, underwent chemo and radiotherapy, had large parts cut out of her body, and has undergone a great deal of mental trauma.

After the initial offender was removed in 2016, a secondary was diagnosed last year in her lungs which was cut out as well. We now continue to monitor mum’s health, praying that another secondary will not appear.

There is very little research being done on Leiomyosarcoma. It falls under the category of gynaecological cancers which, due to their embarrassing (and sometimes lack of) symptoms, are very rarely spoken about. Most cancers have grown less lethal over time. However, due to the lack of research, many gynaecological cancers, including this one, have had relatively constant mortality rates.

Almost every advance in cancer research has come off the back of clinical trials. For people like my mum to have a fighting chance we need clinical trials. This is actually an area where a relatively small amount can make a significant difference. It costs $1500 to put one woman on a clinical trial. Every cent will count.

The money donated here will go straight to ANZGOG, The Australia New Zealand Gynaecological Oncology Group for research on Leiomyosarcoma and other gynaecological cancers. This is Australia’s peak national gynaecological Cancer research group.

Each day in Australia seventeen women are diagnosed with a gynaecological cancer.  Your donation will make my brave mum’s struggle into more than just an inspiring story. Please, please help.