My mum was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2005.

She told my sister and I after my 14th birthday party, and I remember it not feeling real. Only an hour ago I’d been laughing and splashing about in the pool with my friends. I couldn’t connect the dots. Surely it wasn’t true, she was just joking! Mum said she wanted to tell us when we were at our happiest, because it made it easier to deal with.

"Most of her cancer treatment for me was a blur."

We live in Busselton, 3 hours from Perth, where she went for chemotherapy and radiation. Most of the time I wasn’t given any information about her treatment (unless I asked her), so I didn’t understand what was going on. It was scary, confusing, and upsetting, because I hated seeing my mum so sick and in so much pain, and not being able to do anything or comprehend what was really happening.

I remember feeling really bad, and guilty, that when people asked me how Mum was doing, I couldn’t really give them an answer. I had no idea how she really was. She was really sick, but that was all I knew. Mum, being the trooper she is, was attempting to keep up to her usual amazingly capable standards, and fooled me completely. Mum was just Mum, strong as ever, just with a little ‘bout of cancer’ and a lot less hair.

"Looking back, there’s mixed feelings."

On one hand, I feel that I took her for granted, that I shouldn’t have been so heavily reliant on her. But on the other, I was only 14 and it was a huge adjustment. And more than anything, I think Mum found our ignorance a comfort; when we were together it was just us girls, and no medical lingo. We were a family that had a life outside of the scary world of cancer.

I think I joined CanTeen to properly understand, and indirectly involve myself, in Mum’s experiences. Because I couldn’t drive her to Perth, or be with her most of the time (as I was at school), I saw becoming a member as a way of bringing me closer to her, and her journey. It was also a way to get in touch with my own cancer experience. Mum was given the membership forms in hospital, and I filled them out straight away. Since then, I haven’t looked back.

I attended my first camp in 2006, and with each year of being a member, I’ve become more and more actively involved. It is such an amazing feeling to be with people that are in a similar situation to me, and in turn people that have ‘been there, done that’. Those that can enlighten me and guide me through my journey. I’ve met some of my best friends through CanTeen, and honestly I don’t know how I would have gotten through some days without them. When things got too much, I had my CanTeen peeps to turn to!

"It was, and still is, an escape."

These days I’m living in Perth, currently in my second year of Law and Politics at Murdoch University. I’ve also started to take on leadership roles within WA CanTeen. This year, I’m vice Pres, and it is a wonderful feeling to be able to give back to the organisation that has given me so much.

Not only has CanTeen brought me new friendships, but it has strengthened my relationship with my family. For one, my sister has seen how much I love it, and since moving to Melbourne, is thinking of joining the Vic Division. I can’t wait to see her on National Camps.

And despite the distance we now have to travel, Mum and I are besties, and we support each other through everything. Now she is in remission, we celebrate her healthy check-ups with special days and dates.

"There’s no forgetting an ordeal such as cancer."

Mum now has to deal with the day to day pain and discomfort of secondary lymphodema in her left arm, which has no cure. But CanTeen has given me a positive outlook that truly does support, develop, and empower me.