After being diagnosed with a rare soft cell cancer last October, Eden and his family have spent more than six months in hospital battling the disease. Photo: Supplied.
According to the Cancer Council, more than 750 children are diagnosed with some form of cancer each year.
For Eden and his family, this became all too real after he was tragically diagnosed with a rare form of soft tissue cancer known as rhabdomyosarcoma.
What was believed to be a severe cold for young Eden last October turned to the worst possible outcome when an abscess appeared on the top of his mouth and led to him being taken to Randwick Children’s Hospital in Sydney.
“He’s spent more than six months away from home,” Eden’s aunt Samantha Smith said.
“Rhabdomyosarcoma is more prevalent in children, which was already quite exhausting for him and his parents, Isabel and Dean, but also they found some nodular tumours in his lungs, so that’s why they’ve had to really intensely undergo chemotherapy and radiation.
“It was harrowing, it was scary, it was very unknown whether Eden would even make it.
“Dean and Isabel, immediately, that same day, went up to Sydney and have lived up there ever since.
“So obviously, there’s a financial hardship that comes with that, and we wanted to raise as much funds as we could to ensure that they’re able to pay their bills and not have that pressure at the forefront when they’re looking after and caring for their son, who was really, really unwell.”
A gala will be held at the Range Function Centre to help raise funds for Eden and his family. Photo: Supplied.
Eden’s courageous and difficult journey has led to the Wagga community taking notice, with several individuals and community groups coming together to hold a fundraiser to support him and his family.
“We will be holding a gala ball event at the Range Function Centre on 31 May,” Sam said.
“Our aim for the event, in consultation with Eden’s parents, Isabel and Dean, is really about making the evening a very special celebration, not only to recognise Eden’s achievement and bravery, but to really highlight the generosity and spirit of our community.
“So it’s more than just a fundraising event. It’s really about bringing people together to have a fun time celebrating something that’s been a really awful experience by just highlighting the generosity in kindness of our community.”
“The Wagga Marketplace, RE/MAX and RSM have all jumped on board to support the event, and it will be emceed by Dane Simpson and Jamie Way.
“People can expect a red carpet, plenty of drinks and food, some live entertainment from the Mighty Yak, an auction and a guest speaker with an experienced history in caring for sick kids and their families.
“We really hope to see people having a fantastic evening filled with laughter and dancing. It’s really going to be a night full of celebration.”
Tickets for “A Night for Eden” can be purchased here.
A GoFundMe page is also available for those wanting to donate and can be accessed here.
