KEEPS FIGHTING

ert Connor Dawes foundation.

Mrs Stanley hopes her appointment will raise the profile of the organisation and help her to campaign for more funding for research into paediatric brain cancer.

Zoe, who loved to sing, dance and catch butterflies, was a happy little girl when she was plagued with increasing headaches.

After weeks of headaches the Stanley’s were sent to Geelong hospital where scans revealed Zoe had giant cell glioblastoma multiforme, a rare tumour with no cure.

Zoe had surgery two days after diagnosis and some radi- ation, however her prognosis remained uncertain.

Then, Mrs Stanley and husband Clint were told their daughter had nine to 12 months to live.

“Zoe was so brave throughout everything, the radiation and steroids changed how she was feeling,” Mrs Stanley said.

“Even the headaches didn’t stop Zoe from being a happy little girl. She was able to go to kinder ... and even had a first day of school orientation.

“She was so excited to go to school and I just feel so lost without her.”

The Stanleys discovered the RCD foundation when Zoe was sick. The foundation has been actively working to end paediatric brain cancer since 2013.

Zoe was chosen for the ABT-414 drug trial, and underwent surgery, chemotherapy and radiation but, after a long fight, she died on December 22 last year.

“I was so proud of how brave she was, I felt helpless I just wanted to be to be able to help her. I wanted to take it all away from her so she could be healthy,” Mrs Stanley said.

To honour Zoe, Mrs Stanley will bring the foundation’s Brain Week initiative to Geelong schools to start a conver- sation about brain cancer and raise money for further research.

Brain Week will be held across Geelong schools from May 7-11. RCD CEO Liz Dawes said the initiatives encourage young people to start a conversation about brain cancer and raise money for an important cause. Last year 20 schools raised $20,000 for paediatric brain cancer research.

Mrs Stanley hopes Zoe’s story will inspire policy makers to invest in research.

Mrs Stanley had just finished treatment for breast cancer when her daughter was diagnosed. She was shocked by the disparity surrounding the awareness of both diseases.

In 2017 the government announced a $100 million dollar joint funding initiative to boost brain cancer research, but Mrs Stanley says it is not enough.

“I just want there to be more awareness than there is for brain cancer. Last year when Zoe was diagnosed I wasn’t really aware myself, as a mother, that brain cancer could even happen to a little child — let alone my own little girl,” Mrs Stanley said. “They have done a lot of genetic testing, but they still have no answers as to why Zoe had cancer.”