Michelle Cummins
I am 38 years old, a wife, a mother, a sister, a daughter and a scientist. And I have Brain Cancer.
I have a Grade 2 Tumour that is growing about one millimetre (diameter) per year. A faster-growing Grade 4 Tumour limits life expectancy to about 18 months.
This was diagnosed in 2010 after my first seizure and detected in the Motor Sensory area of the right front area of my skull.
I suffer a range of physical and emotional responses; the seizures persist albeit less serious due to the cocktail of drugs I ingest each day.
My diagnosis coincided with my first pregnancy and our child CHELSEA is now five years old.
About 1600 persons are diagnosed with Brain Cancer in Australia each year and about 1200 persons die each year — many of them children.
I am actively involved with the Peace of Mind Foundation which aims to raise awareness of Brain Cancer in the Community and support the patients and carers affected by this disease in various ways:
- A Support Group that meets monthly and provides a caring social opportunity for patients and carers
- Small financial grants up to $500 to assist families and patients
- Household help e.g. gardening and working bees
- Separate Annual Retreats for Women and Men attracting patients and carers from all Australia.
It is not the primary role of PoMF to raise monies for research but it does need donations and volunteers to assist.
I hope that research will enable me to see Chelsea grow to be a teenager and that the Peace of Mind Foundation continues to raise awareness in the community and to help me and my family.