Camera IconTia Scott was diagnosed with osteosarcoma at just 12 years old. Credit: Supplied
"A never-ending routine that drains not just your body but also your soul."
This is the harrowing way 18-year-old Tia Scott describes living with cancer, and in particular, her own personal five-and-a-half-year battle.
"I've been so tired that all I can do is sleep, vomit, repeat," she said.
Diagnosed with osteosarcoma at just 12 years old, the teenager has since endured 800 blood tests, more than 190 scans, and 13 surgical procedures. She has done so with unimaginable strength and inspiring grace.
There wasn't a dry eye in the room as the school-aged student sat before WA's top business leaders and philanthropists at Sunday's Telethon Leeuwin Lunch On Swan and shared her story.
"At the beginning of my journey, I had to go through intensive IV chemotherapy, and following that, I needed surgery to remove the tumour. That surgery lasted 16 hours," she said.
Camera IconAt 13 years old, just six months after ringing the bell to signal the end of her treatment, Tia was told the cancer had returned. Credit: Unknown/Supplied
"I had my right pelvic wing replaced with titanium screws, rods, and bolts placed into my fused spine. I was told that I may never walk again."
At 13 years old, just six months after ringing the bell to signal the end of her treatment, Tia was told the cancer had returned.
"Being told that the cancer was back was worse than being told the first time," she said.
"Hearing that you have to do it all over again after being given hope was soul crushing. I have since had four lung surgeries to remove small tumours, and had two more tumours found in my back."
Just last year, Tia suffered a brain haemorrhage.
"I had to learn to walk again for the second time and relearn to eat and drink after all my treatment," Tia said.
Camera IconTia Scott pictured during her cancer treatment. Credit: Unknown/Supplied
"That was the closest I came to not being here at all."
Her powerful words moved the rich and powerful in the room to tears — and then to immediate action.
Thanks to Tia's inspiration, WA will become home to a national-first $1 million Adolescent and Youth Cancer Service at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital to bridge a critical gap in care for young patients moving out of the children's health system.
With her story weighing heavily on the hearts of guests, WA's corporate leaders and philanthropists dug deeper than ever, opening their wallets to secure the crucial new initiative.
It began just seconds after Tia finished speaking, when BHP's Tim Day rose to pledge a massive $400,000 donation.
The momentum proved unstoppable, with the remaining $600,000 fully funded in just three minutes through collective pledges.
"I've now aged out of PCH, and it's strange to think about, because it's not just a hospital to me, it's a place where I've grown up, a place where I've learned to be brave, to laugh in the middle of pain, and to find family in people who aren't related to me," Tia shared.
"What scares me now isn't just the cancer itself... it's the uncertainty that comes with aging out and leaving a place that has carried me through the hardest years of my life.
"Growing up doesn't mean you stop needing support, it doesn't mean you stop needing joy or encouragement or people who lift you up. That part of me is still there."
Camera IconTelethon Speaker Tia Scott. Credit: Michael Wilson/The West Australian
Camera IconTelethon Leeuwin Lunch on Swan at Royal Freshwater Yacht Club. Credit: John Koh/The West Australian
Tia reflected on the bittersweet heartbreak of leaving behind the support network that kept her spirits alive during her darkest days.
"What has always helped me through is the people around me," she said.
"The nurses, doctors, oncologists, radiologists, and allied health staff who cared for me not just as a patient but as a person, and then there are the organisations that reminded me that I was still a teenager in the middle of all of this.
"They gave me laughter, friendships, support, and a sense of normalcy in a time where I had anything but."
The crucial $1 million lifeline secured over lunch will fund dedicated resources for the next three years, helping to establish a specialised team of four which will be led by Dr Hetal Dholaria, the medical director of Youth Cancer Services.
Dr Dholaria said the funding would completely change the landscape for patients in WA aged 16 to 25.
Camera IconDr Hetal Dholaria. Credit: Sadie Purser/Supplied
"This funding will be a game changer for these young patients," she said.
"The funding will bridge the gap of trial access and modern drug therapy access, and it will make Western Australia the national leader in initiating this, especially cross-collaboration between paediatric and adult services.
"It will iron out the pathways and link the two services together in historical fashion that has not previously known or seen in the country elsewhere."
Tia found comfort in knowing people younger than her will have a better transitional experience.
"Just knowing that it not just helps me, but everyone that I've met that is perhaps younger than me, even the people that I haven't met yet, just knowing that they will get to experience it differently than I did, it gives me a sense of comfort," she said.
"Knowing that I can help make a difference in that drastic changeover of hands."
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