THE turning point in Kiralea Powell’s life came in October 2020, when she was first diagnosed with a brain tumour.
The aggressive meningioma would soon upend her health, her independence, and her family’s stability.
A Port Stephens resident for some 20 years, Kiralea has exhausted all treatments available in Australia and is now seeking help to access treatment overseas.
A mother to three, her oldest son was diagnosed with autism and is reliant on his family’s support.
Not long after Kiralea received the news of her tumour, her husband was diagnosed with leukaemia, leaving the family facing two major medical battles.
Since her diagnosis, she has received numerous treatments.
However, her latest MRI shows her tumour has begun to grow again, leaving her with very few options.
Kiralea now needs support to fund proton beam therapy, a highly targeted treatment not available in Australia.
A fundraiser has been launched to raise $40,000 for her to travel overseas for the treatment, as well as to cover further needs that will come with her condition.
She is currently bedridden, but her NDIS plan does not provide enough support for her to get a medical hoist or access the physiotherapy she needs.
Kiralea is also struggling to come to terms with the new NDIS budget cuts, having been told that her autistic son’s funding will be reduced.
“They’re going to cut his funding,” she said.
“That’s what scares me because I can’t take him out anymore to do anything that I was able to do with him.”
The NDIS is also questioning her condition, with the risk her own funding may be reassessed.
Kiralea has run out of options both financially and geographically, and she’s seeking help to get the proton beam therapy, which has a 97% success rate in stopping the growth of tumours like hers.
She hopes to see her son get married this October, and be around for her daughter’s wedding and future grandchildren.
Kiralea’s fundraising page can be found at: https://gofund.me/a56914bdd
By Ruby VAN DER WIJGAART
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