An aspiring footballer has been forced to put his career on hold after being struck down with an extremely rare, life-threatening form of cancer.
Ollie Miles, 16, from the Capricorn Coast in Queensland, was diagnosed with a unique form of leukaemia just before Christmas.
He initially told friends and family that he had a toothache but 36 hours later, Ollie was in hospital receiving his first treatment for the aggressive cancer.
His treatment plans are changing daily, according to Yeppoon Swans n Football Club president Peter Watkins, the club Ollie played for.
The footy club has launched a GoFundMe to help pay for Ollie’s ongoing treatment and his parents, Clint and Kate, have relocated to Brisbane where their son will participate in a worldwide trial for rare leukaemia strains over the next three years.
Ollie Miles, 16, was struck down with an incredibly rare form of leukaemia in the weeks leading up to Christmas after initially complaining to his family about a toothache
Ollie is only one of 150 young people to have the disease across a number of countries.
He is expected to remain in Brisbane for least six to nine months.
‘Ollie has a big fight on his hands, but with the support of his family, friends, St Brendan’s school mates and the Yeppoon footy club, we have his back and we will see him return to Yeppoon as soon as possible,’ the club wrote.
Mr Watkins said that Ollie’s diagnosis was ‘very rapid’ but that his family was appreciative of the community’s support during ‘a pretty traumatic time’.
Looking forward, Mr Watkins revealed that Ollie will require blood donations and a bone marrow transplant as part of his treatment.
‘We encourage anybody out there that is willing to become a blood donor and also get their bone marrow checked at the bone marrow registry.
‘It’s not just kids like Ollie, there’s a lot of kids all over the country that certainly need this sort of help,’ Mr Watkins told ABC.
Ollie had been one of the Gold Coast Suns Academy’s rising stars in AFL and his captain said that he ‘had a big future in the sport’ before his diagnosis.
‘But obviously that’s parked now, and he’s got much bigger things to be fighting for,’ he added.
Ollie is only one of 150 young people in a number of countries to have the disease and will take part in a worldwide trial for rare leukaemia strains over the next three years
The Leukaemia Foundation’s Blood Cancer Partnerships general manager, Tim Murphy, said the foundation would be backing Ollie every step of the way.
There are over 120 different types of blood cancers that exist and Mr Murphy said that Ollie’s case was complex.
Despite the challenges he pledged that the Leukaemia Foundation would work with Ollie and his family to help him recover.
Mr Murphy added that it was a ‘very rare disorder’ for a young person to develop, and that such situations can be very hard on both the patient and their family.
The expert echoed Mr Watkin’s plea for anyone who can to go to the n Bone Marrow Donor Registry and sign up to donate bone marrow.
‘Or go to the blood bank for the ability to provide blood and plasma donations … each of those services will be vitally important in Ollie’s case and other ns who need a good match,’ Mr Murphy told the publication.
The Leukaemia Foundation’s Blood Cancer Partnerships general manager, Tim Murphy, said the foundation would be backing Ollie every step of the way