Knowing about other people's personal experience of cancer can be a source of support and inspiration when you or someone you love is going through cancer treatment.
In this section, Cancer Council supporters share their stories.
If you have a personal experience of cancer you would like to share, we would love to hear from you.
Please email info@cancer.org.au if you would like to share your story.
Alastair McCausland
The doctor referred him to a skin cancer clinic, and he was diagnosed with a basal cell carcinoma.
Alison Newell
In the space of 22 days I was screened, diagnosed with breast cancer, received treatment and am now 100% cured.
Andrew Barrington
A few years after my own remission from mantle cell lymphoma, I rang my local Cancer Council to see what kind of volunteer opportunities there were that I might be able participate in.
Annette Jones
Annette was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive ampullary cancer in her bile duct in July 2019, at the age of 58.
Barry Du Bois
I was diagnosed in 2010 with plasmacytoma myeloma, a cancer of the immune system which attacks healthy bone marrow and destroyed the vertebra at the top of my spine.
Bethany Kariys
Bethany was diagnosed with melanoma when she was 19. She shared her story with us for National Skin Cancer Action Week 2015.
Bev Drechsler
Everybody knows someone who has had cancer. I lost my sister, my aunty, my grandmother, my cousin and two friends to it. It's an awful disease, and I feel we should all do what we can to help Cancer Council fight it.
Bob Holden
I received a phone call at 10 minutes to nine on a Thursday night, informing me that I had an aggressive form of prostate cancer and my prostate would need to be removed very quickly.
Breanne Shaw
I was diagnosed with bone cancer when I was just 14.
Brett Finneran
I was diagnosed with germ-cell pinealoma – a fancy name for tumours in the middle of my brain.
Carol Godfrey
David was diagnosed with a glioblastoma multiforme tumour on his brainstem
Casey Barnes
Behind Casey’s smiling face on Halls of Fame, however, is his lesser-known journey with skin cancer.
Claire Williams
I'd always gone for regular Pap tests, whenever I got the reminder letter in the mail. I knew it was important that if anything was ever wrong, it was found early.
Craig Brewer
In May 2018, Craig noticed a small lump on the inside of his bottom lip.
Damien MacRae
Damien's suspicious mole turned out to be melanoma.
Doreen Flynn
We all know somebody affected by cancer; sadly for Doreen, she watched three generations of her family fight this dreadful disease.
Emma Gierschick
Emma found the lump in my left breast while I was in the shower in August 2015
Emma Rackebrandt
The doctors found an abnormality in my spine. I was scared and confused.
Garry Callaghan
I have spent many years in the sun because I suffered from acne on my back and felt that having a tan would disguise it, and the sun would help it heal.
Ginger Gorman
After visiting my GP and a biopsy of the lump, thyroid cancer was the answer.
Grace Hamill
My skin cancer journey began a lot earlier than most.
Graham Jenkins
The UV produced from welding has likely contributed to numerous squamous cell carcinomas and basal cell carcinomas needing to be removed from his arms, chest and legs.
Greer Worsley
Greer was only 55 when she was diagnosed with a tumour in her kidney.
Jen O'Donnell
The news of their mum's cancer diagnosis knocked us all for six
Hayley Oakley
Hayley’s plans were turned upside down when she was told she had cancer
Jenni Woods
In early October 2013, I had a check-up and blood tests in Geraldton WA, which all came back clear. We spent the next three weeks making our way to Adelaide.
Jessica Rusinko
In May 2010, I was 24 and in my final semester of university, when my mum started to experience back pain.
Jim Maxwell
It took me until much later in life to realise what effect those years in the sun could have on my health. I
Jo Cockwill
I was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer when I was 55 and went through a mastectomy and chemotherapy as part of my treatment.
Joshua Bonello
In June 2011 I felt a lump in my testicle, just before my 23rd birthday.
Kellie Heritage
Telling my kids, then aged 10 and 13, that I had breast cancer was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do.
Kevin Jarvis
In April 2013, I was in the shower when I felt two small, hard lumps under my left nipple.
Kimberley Brien
I was still in my teens when I was diagnosed with a malignant melanoma on my back.
Kirsten McCreghan
In March 2014, at the age of 30, I was diagnosed with cervical cancer.
Kirsty Browne
Kirsty's experience with cervical cancer reminds us of the importance of the HPV vaccination and regular cervical screening tests.
Kirsty Wickens
My son Mason was diagnosed with a rhabdoid tumour on 1 August 2012 when he was five months old.
Lauren Poole
I was 22 and studying at university when one day I discovered a lump in the pad of my right thumb.
Louise's breast screening story
Breast screening saved my life.
Mark Awburn
In March 2014, just after his 50th birthday, my husband Mark received a National Bowel Screening test kit in the mail.
Mark Nye
I had a neuroendocrine pancreatic cancer.
Matilda Wagenaar
I was told I had endometrial cancer.
Matt Kean
Within weeks I was diagnosed with Stage III metastatic melanoma.
Michael Birchall
Michael was 25 when he discovered he had Stage 4 melanoma.
Michael Wade
I received the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program's Faecal Occult Blood Test (FOBT) kit in the mail around the time of my 50th birthday.
Natalie Khoury
When Natalie Khoury was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma in 2013, she turned to Cancer Council for information and support.
Nathan Telfer
When I lifted my shirt for him to use a stethoscope on my chest he noticed some moles, and started looking at an unusual mole on my shoulder.
Nell Hanbury
In July 2013, when I was 25 years old, I woke up with a numb arm.
Nick Barnett
I was 34 and just days away from getting married when I was diagnosed with a melanoma on my jawline.
Paul James
Two in three Australians will sadly be diagnosed with skin cancer at some point in their lifetime.
Phillip Wilson
Phillip Wilson’s story with throat cancer begins nine years ago, when he and his wife Susie had been travelling around Australia, living the best life.
Risto Doneski
It was testicular cancer and I would need an operation to remove the testicle.
Rizsa Miguel
My daughter, Jamaica, is a pancreatic cancer survivor.
Samantha Coyle
Samantha Coyle was just 23 when she was diagnosed with melanoma.
Samantha Mulligan
The scan found a 5 cm round solid mass in my armpit.
Scott Roediger
I'm sharing my brother's story during National Skin Cancer Action Week in the hope that it will shock some people into being a little bit smarter about their time in the sun this summer, particularly if they work outdoors.
Sheila Lukacevic
In 2006, when I was 53, I was having a shower when I noticed a red mark and inflammation on my left breast.
Sheree Hailes
Sheree’s mother was diagnosed with a rare stomach cancer in 2015, at the age of 64. It was Stage 4, and she was given a prognosis of 6 – 12 months.
Suzy Musarra
I was diagnosed with breast cancer 13 years ago and, at 32, I didn't have a clue about cancer. At the time I had a one-year-old daughter and a four-year-old son. The greatest challenge would be the logistics of having cancer treatment and taking care of a young family.
Te-Aorangi Freisler
Mrs Freisler, 46, was shocked to learn she had incurable stomach cancer.
Tony Chiles
When I was diagnosed with cancer, my world turned upside down. Because I knew that if I didn't have treatment, I was going to die. It's very confronting.
Tracey Williams
In the middle of 2013, I had an intense pain deep within my bowel only three times, each lasting for about 15 minutes. The pain was enough to take my breath away and force me to sit down.
Vince Kelly
I was about 35 when I was diagnosed with my first skin cancer.
Wallace H. Crellin
I was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 1993, although I had no symptoms.
Wayne Higgs
There are many challenges in linking work to cancer.
Wendy Goodale
I was told on the spot, at 38 weeks pregnant, that I had a squamous cell carcinoma, tongue cancer
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