You can work wonders
for sick kids

Mila was so fatigued she would very often refuse to eat or drink.

Can you imagine taking your child to the doctor thinking she just has tonsillitis, only to discover she has leukaemia

In mid-2018, Mila had symptoms of what was thought to be influenza, coupled with unexplained bruising. She just didn’t seem to be able to recover from her illness and was soon showing other symptoms like a bloody nose and high temperatures. As weeks went by she started losing the colour in her skin, and her lips became blue.  

 Mila’s mother, J’nae suggested she take some time off kindy but Mila would cry and insist she was feeling better. In term three of kindy, her health took a steep decline – she had lost weight, her appetite and had become even more pale. 

 A week after her fifth birthday in September, Mila was so fatigued she would spend most of the day on the couch and would refuse to eat or drink. It got to the point where Mila’s legs were so sore that she didn’t want to walk. Mila’s mum was convinced it was a virus and was concerned that it had not yet gone away, but never thought for a moment it could be leukaemia.  

 After her first doctor’s appointment, the doctor prescribed antibiotics, thinking Mila had tonsillitis. After a second trip to Mila’s regular GP, she was admitted to the Sunshine Coast University Hospital where she was given fluids and blood transfusions. It was during this admission that the Seeley family found out Mila had Leukaemia.  

On Wednesday, 26 September 2018, Mila was transferred to the Queensland Children’s Hospital. A day later, Mila had surgery for a peripherally–inserted central catheter (PICC) line insertion, followed by a lumbar puncture with intrathecal chemo and a bone marrow aspirate. Two days later Mila started day one of her long journey with chemotherapy. Mila had one month of intensive chemotherapy in Brisbane followed by ongoing treatment and appointments at both Queensland Children’s Hospital and Sunshine Coast University Hospital. 

Now Mila is on a journey of maintenance and recovery. She has a two-year plan including hospital treatments and appointments, oral medication and regular blood tests. Mila has a permanent vascular access device (port-a-cath) inserted into one of her major veins so she can receive chemotherapy. 

During Mila’s hospital admissions, she enjoyed entertainment services from the Children’s Hospital Foundation including pet therapy, music therapy and special entertainment events.

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If you sign up after the 28th, your monthly donation will be debited on the 15th or the next working day.

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