For newlyweds and first-time parents Scott and Samantha Macmillan, Samantha’s devastating diagnosis of stage four bowel cancer in 2017 at the age of 31 was a shock to their young family.
Samantha’s symptoms started out as stomach cramps, similar to having a period. She had tiredness but associated this with having their young son Harlan. Then, at a friend’s wedding, Samantha complained about severe stomach cramps and took herself off to the hospital.
While Samantha was in hospital overnight, doctors identified a growth in her lower intestine, which was subsequently diagnosed as bowel cancer.
Your generosity this Daffodil Day will help local researchers who are working tirelessly to achieve ground-breaking discoveries that bring forward the day we stop cancer.
After undertaking several rounds of chemotherapy, radiation and immunotherapy, Samantha’s treatments stopped working, and in June 2023, aged 38, she passed away.
Scott keeps up to date with the latest trials and treatment options, in the hope that other families won’t have to go through the same thing.
Scott adds “research is needed today and next year, and the year after. It's not going to stop until bowel cancer and other cancers can be eliminated”.
With your generosity, you can give hope that more West Australians won’t have to hear the words “you have cancer”.
