A GO FUND Me page for an Irish woman living in Australia is going viral as she attempts to raise money to battle an aggressive breast cancer.
Michelle Beck is originally from Sligo but moved to Australia seven years ago to marry a Sydney man she met when they both lived in Dublin.
The pair have three children together but on the day of the birth of their third child, a girl called Thea, she was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer.
In a video accompanying her fundraising appeal, Michelle explains that she discovered the lump while seven months pregnant but that her diagnosis was delayed due to her pregnancy.
Her sister Claire explained to TheJournal.ie that in the almost two years since that diagnoses she has had intensive and tiring treatment.
“She has had two mastectomies each one year apart to remove both breast tissue and nodes, however her chemo treatment is taking its toll and is no longer the best option to prolong her life and help her fight to see her babies grow up and remember her,” Claire says.
“She set up a go fund me page yesterday morning Irish-time and it is performing amazingly with donations flooding in from all corners of the world.”
Since being set up, the Go Fund Me page has raised $102,295 (€64, 604) and Michelle has also featured on Australia’s 9 News.
9 News explains that the aggressiveness of the breast cancer has meant that Michelle has opted for immunotherapy, something not covered under Australia’s Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS).
The cost is $6,000 (€3,780) every three weeks for a year.
The fundraising page is written from the point of view of young Thea while the video features Michelle reading a letter to her young girl.
In it she explains that because her girl was born on the same day she was diagnosed, the “whole thing has been mapped by her life”.
“She never knew any different, she knew me as ‘mam-with-no-hair’ to start with,” Michelle said.
Speaking to her almost two-year-old baby, the mother-of-three adds:
“On the day of your birth, a breast biopsy diagnosed me with advanced triple negative breast cancer. I had a huge fight ahead of me Thea, I have a huge fight ahead of me. None of this is your fault my darling, it was just terrible timing.”
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