Border family's cancer fight was a long way from home

Matt and Kristy's daughter Ella, who was aged 8 at the time, had complained about a persistent sore leg.

An initial visit to the doctor didn't pick up anything unusual. Not convinced, Mrs McMahon took Ella to a physiotherapist.

It was the physiotherapist - the same one who helped Mrs McMahon's rehabilitation from breast cancer - who picked up a lump in Ella's right femur. A few X-rays later, the teen was diagnosed with bone cancer (osteosarcoma).

IN OTHER NEWS:

Just four days later, the whole family was packed up in the car and on the way to Melbourne so Ella could undergo chemotherapy and surgeries at the Royal Children's Hospital.

"Matt and I had both given notice with our jobs, and said we don't know when we will be back," Mrs McMahon said. "We pulled both of the kids (Ella and brother Rory) out of school.

"We had nowhere to stay. We were just hoping that a spot would come up at Ronald McDonald House."

Ella was one of the first children at the Royal Children's Hospital to undergo a procedure to rebuild her leg. The surgery involved doctors inserting an expandable rod to lengthen the femur, which was controlled by a machine.

The surgery was successful, but every time Ella got an infection, she needed to return to the Albury Base Hospital, and was then sent to Melbourne for treatment.

"This is a Border anomaly that you've probably heard all the time. You'd fly to Melbourne, and then they'd say, 'Oh, we can't fly back to NSW'," Mrs McMahon said.

Ella's parents believe oncology services should be expanded in Albury-Wodonga, so children can receive treatment closer to home.

"I think COVID has shown us how important it is to be able to decentralise medical services and have them locally," she said. "The case numbers might be a lot lower in kids oncology, but it's a much bigger impact on families because it is mum and dad and siblings that are all affected."

Albury Wodonga Health director of cancer services Dr Craig Underhill said there were no plans to expand paediatric care at the cancer centre.

"Orthopedic surgery for children with cancer is highly specialised, and is unlikely to ever be provided in Albury-Wodonga," he said of Ella's case. "What we need to do is provide better support for people who need to travel.

"There are some parts of care that just will not be able to be delivered in a regional centre.

"There is support in place, and hopefully that can be expanded, but there are certain parts of care that will only ever be able to be delivered in a highly specialised centre. It's best to get the right care in the right facility."

Dr Underhill said paediatric chemotherapy chairs and a delivery suite were built as part of the Cancer Centre five years ago.

"It is within the paediatric ward at Albury Wodonga Health for safety reasons as the Cancer Centre is an adult facility and children have additional needs from skilled paediatric staff," he said.

"There is an agreement in place with Albury Wodonga Health and the Royal Children's Hospital to share care."

Generally, Dr Underhill said, children and their families needed to travel to Melbourne or Sydney for the diagnosis and work up of their cancer and need to be well supported during that time.

"Some components of care like certain doses of chemotherapy can be delivered in the paediatric chemotherapy suite at Albury Base which I understand has enough capacity for the time being. Some care is too specialised to be delivered locally."

Last month, Ella and her family competed in their first Riverina Redneck Rally.

The family is appealing to the community for volunteers and donations of homemade goods as they prepare to open a Country Hope shop at Albury's City Walk Arcade.

The support organisation provides financial relief for families of children who are diagnosed with cancer or other life-threatening illnesses.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: