When Kalgoorlie mum, Kim Luke, first noticed her three-and-a-half year old was ‘a bit off his food’, she checked in with her mother’s group. Fussy food habits were a common theme among the other parents, so she didn’t think twice. But when Jaydan started complaining of an increasingly sore tummy, his mum quickly realised something wasn’t right with her normally energetic boy. As Kim describes in episode #127 of the Flying Doctor Podcast, a Sunday afternoon visit to the local hospital would quickly escalate to an emergency RFDS retrieval flight, and a confronting but thankfully quick diagnosis of Wilms Tumour or childhood kidney cancer. It would be nine difficult and often uncertain months before Jaydan would officially return home to Kalgoorlie from his exhausting cancer treatment program in Perth. But Jaydan’s journey and that first, confronting flight on an RFDS plane, would also make an indelible impression on his mum. As she sat on that flight to Perth, clutching just a few ‘thrown together items’ inside Jaydan’s Batman Backpack in her arms, Kim promised herself that she would find a way to help other families, just like hers, to get through one of the scariest times in their lives.
Kim also remembers the moment when a Perth Doctor relayed the news of Jaydan’s diagnosis. The country mum was alone with her sick child, her husband and baby daughter still enroute from Kalgoorlie and she felt completely and utterly isolated. Kim burst into tears when she heard the Doctor’s words. Scans had revealed that Jaydan had a Wilm’s tumour on his kidney - also known as nephroblastoma. Originating in the kidney cells, it is one of the most common types of cancer in children and typically affects those under 5 years of age. In Jaydan’s case, the tumour had grown to the size of small football and would require immediate surgery, followed by a brutal few months of chemotherapy and aggressive cancer treatments. With Jaydan now thankfully in remission, his love of sport and particularly bikes is clear to see. Kim and her husband always maintained that (within reason), Jaydan should always be allowed to ‘just be a kid’ – even when he was undergoing his chemotherapy treatment.
Having survived her own battle with cancer in recent years, Kim is acutely aware of some of the ‘simple things’ that can make a rural and remote family’s ‘health journey’ just that little bit easer. Which is why she founded the Grab and Go Bags, with her local Rotary Club quickly becoming involved. The bags have been designed for carers of children who have been evacuated quickly to Perth so they have something to give comfort and assistance when they first arrive at hospital. Each bag contains essentials including a toiletry set, bottled water, a $30 EFTPOS card and contact details for the Children’s Hospital and Perth-based Rotary groups. You can find out more at Boulder Rotary Club of WA donate grab and go bags for RFDS patients | Royal Flying Doctor Service
