Help Sam fight Cancer!!!

Sam is a close friend of mine that has been dealt a horrible card in life and really needs our support! No words can describe how much of a genuine human being Sam is: a selfless legend that was flourishing in life, a highly skilled NSW Ambulance Paramedic and a very active volunteer for St John Ambulance Victoria.

In July this year, Sam was suddenly and unexpectedly diagnosed with an aggressive form of unfavourable Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. At the time, he was found to have several masses in his chest, including a 129mm mass in his mediastinum. This has resulted in paralysis of his vocal cords. It has also had a huge impact on his lung function, which has impacted his ability to do simple day-to-day tasks we take for granted.

While he is receiving exceptional care at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, his journey has already been extremely difficult. He has had multiple unplanned hospital admissions, and is experiencing severe side effects of his intense chemotherapy regime.

His treatment needs to be as aggressive as the cancer, and he will be unable to work while he undergoes intensive treatment for the next 6-9 months. Once the cancer is in remission, it is also expected that he will have to undergo significant rehabilitation of his vocal cords to regain use of his voice prior to returning to work as a Paramedic with NSW Ambulance.

Sam needs our help. Even in a country with socialised health care like Australia, there are a huge number of other costs involved with a lengthy cancer battle, aside from the loss of income. This includes things like expensive medications, parking while attending outpatient appointments several times a week, supports for him to use at home, paying for out of pocket specialist appointments that are not covered by Medicare, and a wheelchair to help him get around on the days when his breathing is most affected.

Sam is always someone who offers support to others, both at work and in his personal life, and is not one to ask for help. He quietly does a lot of volunteer work, and is always willing to help others, but now it’s Sam who needs help. Any donations would be deeply appreciated and I understand if you're not in a position to donate money. If that's the case and you're able to donate blood, please do so as Sam has required many blood products!