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Harry Sam was only nine years old when he was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of cancer.
Now Harry and his family, from Stanhope Gardens in Sydney’s north-west, are desperately appealing to their community for help to access potentially life-saving treatment for a rare cancer in the United States.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Harry complained of a stomach ache. A year later, he needed a life-saving new treatment.
Harry’s mother Julia Sammuth said he was diagnosed in 2022 with high-risk neuroblastoma, a childhood cancer that affects the nervous system and usually occurs in children under the age of five.
“His whole life has been turned upside down,” she told 7NEWS.
The first sign that something was wrong, says Julia, was when Harry started complaining of stomach pains and no longer wanted to exercise.
“As soon as his blood test results came in, his GP called and said Harry needed to go straight to hospital,” she said.
Since then, Harry has been through endless rounds of treatment, with little improvement in his condition.
However, the family has been told that Harry is eligible for a clinical trial, not available in Australia, which could save the boy’s life.
The US-based study involved a drug called DFMO.
However, the cost of the treatment and travel is expected to exceed $130,000.
“If that’s what we have to do to keep Harry alive – then that’s what we’re doing – anybody would do that as a parent,” Matthew Sammott, Harry’s father, told 7NEWS.
“We’re just trying to get him to be a kid again, that’s all we want him to do,” Julia added.
Christine Cockburn from Rare Cancers Australia told 7NEWS the trial showed “great promise” for children with high-risk neuroblastoma.
“But it’s out of reach, both geographically and financially,” she said.
Julia added that their family felt like they were “running out of options.”
“We are asking the community to help us get to the US and try to save our son,” Julia said.
A Fundraising on the Rare Cancers Australia page has been organized to help the family.
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