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Ellie’s Childhood Cancer Story

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Your donation will help fund research to prevent, detect and treat all types of cancer.

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"We know that if Ellie had been diagnosed with this cancer a few years ago, she would have died. She is only alive today because of the Zero Childhood Cancer program."

- MINA, ELLIE'S MUM

ELLIE'S STORY

When doctors and researchers from the Zero Childhood Cancer program (led in partnership by Children’s Cancer Institute and Sydney Children’s Hospital, Randwick) found the tumour in baby Ellie’s chest it was so big it was crushing her heart and lungs.

And when the tumour kept growing despite chemotherapy, Rob and Mina had to face every parent’s worst nightmare.

“They said to us, ‘She’s hanging on by her ten little fingertips. You need to say your goodbyes’.”

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ZERO CHILDHOOD CANCER PROGRAM

Researchers from the Zero Childhood Cancer program, an initiative that was kick-started by ACRF funding, got straight to work analysing the genetics of Ellie’s tumour.

Using everything they’d learned about Ellie’s cancer, doctors and researchers working together identified the exact drug to target the tumour. Before her parents’ eyes, she came back from the brink of death.

“Day by day, the improvements were just amazing. We were so excited when she was well enough to move into a ward.”

In just four weeks the tumour shrank to the point where Ellie could be taken off life support and breathe on her own.

THE POWER OF PERSONALISED MEDICINE

Using customised systems and technology funded by gifts like yours, researchers can now analyse the complete genetic sequence of rare tumours within weeks. They can then match children like Ellie with the specific, targeted treatments that could save their lives.

“ACRF was there at the very start, and since then we’ve been able to leverage ACRF’s contribution 30-fold. We’ve gone on to raise almost $50 million, and we couldn’t have done that without the critical building blocks funded by that initial grant.”

– Professor Michelle Haber AM
Executive Director, Children’s Cancer Institute, Research Lead, Zero Childhood Cancer Program

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ACRF’s Medical Research Advisory Committee selects the boldest research ideas for funding, backing projects that help find better ways to prevent, detect and treat all types of cancer.

Support from people like you has launched snowballing projects like these:

ACRF Breakthrough Technologies Laboratory

$141 million in additional funding raised since $2.5 million ACRF grant.

Increasing understanding of Australia’s most common and most deadly cancers and accelerating the development of life-saving new treatments.

ACRF International Centre for the Proteome of Human Cancer (ProCan™)

$60 million additional funding raised since $10 million ACRF grant.

Transforming the way cancer is diagnosed and treated so that clinicians can swiftly identify the most effective treatment option foreach patient.

ACRF Centre for Cancer Genomic Medicine

$15.2 million additional funding raised since $1.6 million ACRF grant.

Using the latest DNA sequencing technologies to create molecular based based tumour profiles so treatments can be tailored to individual patients.

Help us fund more life-saving research for the many Australians who are diagnosed with cancer each year.

DONATE