Support Sally Bramwell's cancer recovery
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Sally Bramwell's cancerous end to 2019
My bestie, Sally Bramwell, has had an average end to 2019.
Life’s full of surprises - a lot of great ones, but also the not so fun.
A cancerous tumour, operations and a long recovery are the not so fun surprises.
And all are what Sal has confronted since early October 2019 and will continue to do so for at least another six months, meaning long periods of time off work, which she has already had and will still need in 2020.
We know bills don’t stop asking to be paid, even when we don’t have the money.
And Sal needs some financial help while she gets herself back to peak performance of the fun-loving, caring, beautiful soul that she is.
And that’s why we are here. To ask for a little financial help for Sal.
No one likes to ask for money, but the situation is now a bit desperate.
Please know, no one will be measured on their capacity to give. Life is not easy for anyone. It’s just at the moment, Sal’s life is a little more difficult than usual.
But, if you have a few dollars to spare, it would be gratefully received and will only be used for the everyday most common financial necessities.
Read below, to learn more about,
· Why Sal needs financial assistance
· How the financial assistance will be used
· What happened to Sal
· More about Sal as a person
Why Sally Bramwell needs financial assistance
Three surgeries in two months with a fourth to be scheduled in another six months (stay tuned, we’ll get to your why questions in a later section) means Sal has used all her sick leave and annual leave entitlements and spent her savings.
She is ineligible for income protection because of a stroke she had in 2014 and her superannuation company will not allow her to access her super.
How the financial assistance will be used
Ongoing associated medical costs (equipment and medication), rent, utility bills, dietary required dog food for Ashes, phone bill, car payments, loan payment, general household expenses.
So, what happened to Sally Bramwell?
The appendix operation
Sal had her appendix out in the first week of October. Not a few days before she was celebrating another Richmond Tiger’s Grand Final victory with me at the pub. Sal’s not a Tiger supporter herself - the blue and white of Geelong are her stripes - but as bestie’s do we share wins together, as well as losses. But, alas, her appendix got a little cranky and decided it no longer wanted to keep up residence in our Sal and was removed at Werribee Mercy Hospital.
The cancerous tumour
Every appendix removed is tested. When the patient attends the follow up appointment to find out the results, in the vast majority of cases the news from the doctor is routine and the patient is happily on their way.
Unfortunately, Sal’s news was not routine.
Instead, devastating.
Sal was one of the small percentage (<2%) diagnosed with an Appendiceal Neuroendocrine tumour. In more simple terms, Sal had a cancerous mass on her appendix that was being fed by her nervous system and hormones. Untreated, this could have spread throughout her body.
An operation to remove the mass was required.
The cancerous tumour removal operation
On Monday 25th November 2019, Sal had her second operation in as many months, to remove a large piece of her bowel to ensure they had removed all of the tumour (a hemicolectomy). This is fairly major surgery and usually involves at least a week in hospital and a solid couple of months recovering if all goes to plan.
But our Sal never seems to luck into taking the easy way.
Unfortunately, a few days later she developed a leak from her bowel and had to return to theatre for emergency life-saving surgery.
The life-saving operation
The surgeons' saved Sal’s life on the evening of Sunday 1st December 2019.
A large incision (laparotomy) was made in Sal's abdomen to find and fix the problem - which involved more bowel removed and a temporary stoma formation.
Talking to Sal now, she can recount to me her inability to move on Sunday for the pain pulsating through her entire body. She was, what is called, 'septic'. Sal was dying and she knew it. But, like the fighter she is, she stayed conscious through it all, despite her only movements being the push of the pain-relief buzzer in her right-hand and a grunt to respond to any questions asked by the doctors and nurses.
Until the operation , thankfully, got her back on track.
The recovery ahead
The third life-saving operation was quite intrusive and the recovery will be much longer than anticipated. Sal will not be able to work for a few months and even then, will probably need to return to work part time, on light duties. She will also require more surgery next year, to reverse the stoma formation, requiring even more time off work.
Complicating all of this is Sal’s past medical history. Those of you who know Sal well, know she had a stroke in 2014. Although her visible symptoms are now minimal, it has and will continue to cause some potential challenges for Sal and the medical team on how they manage her recovery.
For now, we are just so grateful to still have our Sal.
And on a positive note, Sal has been informed by her medical team that they have removed all of the cancerous tumour with no signs it has spread anywhere else.
Finally, some good news, which means we can all now focus on the recovery.
Who is Sally Bramwell?
Sally Bramwell is a 38 soon to be 39 year old strong, independent, caring, thoughtful, intelligent woman.
Sal is the daughter of two loving parents - Sue and Tony; the younger sister of three caring older brothers - Tim, Chris and Jonno; and sister-in-law to three wonderful women - Tara, Bec and Hayley. Sal is also the Aunty to three spirited nieces and one nephew who love their Aunty Sal very much and have a lot of fun getting up to hijinx and playing together. Sal also has a partner, Tim, who she has been committed to for almost three years and is a favourite person in his 9 year-old daughter’s life. Oh, and I almost forgot, she is the proud mother of her dog, Ashes!
Sal loves her sport, especially the Geelong Cats (sorry about the preliminary final this year, Sal…) and is an art lover who has painted and drawn since a young age - a skill inherited from her Dad, Tony. She is what you would consider to be a true Melbournian - loving both the arts and sport with the same heart. Sal lives to laugh and make others happy and is a great support to others when things get rough for them. Sal has a non-judgmental listening ear that I have had the very good luck to have in my life since the age of 5.
I couldn’t do this world without Sal. Our dreams are wrapped into one, such as the pipe dreams of a comedic-musical duo that runs a second hand book/wine store . We have agreed she will run the purchasing department (as her profession is procurement) and I will shoot the breeze with the customers (as I am a librarian) - though Sal, can really do both, being the people-person we know and love her to be.
So while things are a bit tough for Sal at the moment, I am so glad we got some good news about the cancer being removed. Because basically I need her by my side for the next 40 years or so.
One final anecdote
There is a final anecdote about Sal that I must share with you. After Sal’s third operation, I visited her on the Monday evening after work. Upon entering her hospital room, she looked up at me with concerned eyes and the first thing she said to me was, “How are you?” Sal was asking how I was after she just had her life-saving operation. That sums up the person our Sal is and always will be.
Thank you for reading
And lastly, thank you for taking the time to read about Sally Bramwell’s situation.
If you have a few dollars to spare, it would be gratefully received.
But, as mentioned earlier, no one will be measured on their capacity to give.
Bec
My bestie, Sally Bramwell, has had an average end to 2019.
Life’s full of surprises - a lot of great ones, but also the not so fun.
A cancerous tumour, operations and a long recovery are the not so fun surprises.
And all are what Sal has confronted since early October 2019 and will continue to do so for at least another six months, meaning long periods of time off work, which she has already had and will still need in 2020.
We know bills don’t stop asking to be paid, even when we don’t have the money.
And Sal needs some financial help while she gets herself back to peak performance of the fun-loving, caring, beautiful soul that she is.
And that’s why we are here. To ask for a little financial help for Sal.
No one likes to ask for money, but the situation is now a bit desperate.
Please know, no one will be measured on their capacity to give. Life is not easy for anyone. It’s just at the moment, Sal’s life is a little more difficult than usual.
But, if you have a few dollars to spare, it would be gratefully received and will only be used for the everyday most common financial necessities.
Read below, to learn more about,
· Why Sal needs financial assistance
· How the financial assistance will be used
· What happened to Sal
· More about Sal as a person
Why Sally Bramwell needs financial assistance
Three surgeries in two months with a fourth to be scheduled in another six months (stay tuned, we’ll get to your why questions in a later section) means Sal has used all her sick leave and annual leave entitlements and spent her savings.
She is ineligible for income protection because of a stroke she had in 2014 and her superannuation company will not allow her to access her super.
How the financial assistance will be used
Ongoing associated medical costs (equipment and medication), rent, utility bills, dietary required dog food for Ashes, phone bill, car payments, loan payment, general household expenses.
So, what happened to Sally Bramwell?
The appendix operation
Sal had her appendix out in the first week of October. Not a few days before she was celebrating another Richmond Tiger’s Grand Final victory with me at the pub. Sal’s not a Tiger supporter herself - the blue and white of Geelong are her stripes - but as bestie’s do we share wins together, as well as losses. But, alas, her appendix got a little cranky and decided it no longer wanted to keep up residence in our Sal and was removed at Werribee Mercy Hospital.
The cancerous tumour
Every appendix removed is tested. When the patient attends the follow up appointment to find out the results, in the vast majority of cases the news from the doctor is routine and the patient is happily on their way.
Unfortunately, Sal’s news was not routine.
Instead, devastating.
Sal was one of the small percentage (<2%) diagnosed with an Appendiceal Neuroendocrine tumour. In more simple terms, Sal had a cancerous mass on her appendix that was being fed by her nervous system and hormones. Untreated, this could have spread throughout her body.
The cancerous tumour removal operation
On Monday 25th November 2019, Sal had her second operation in as many months, to remove a large piece of her bowel to ensure they had removed all of the tumour (a hemicolectomy). This is fairly major surgery and usually involves at least a week in hospital and a solid couple of months recovering if all goes to plan.
But our Sal never seems to luck into taking the easy way.
Unfortunately, a few days later she developed a leak from her bowel and had to return to theatre for emergency life-saving surgery.
The life-saving operation
The surgeons' saved Sal’s life on the evening of Sunday 1st December 2019.
Talking to Sal now, she can recount to me her inability to move on Sunday for the pain pulsating through her entire body. She was, what is called, 'septic'. Sal was dying and she knew it. But, like the fighter she is, she stayed conscious through it all, despite her only movements being the push of the pain-relief buzzer in her right-hand and a grunt to respond to any questions asked by the doctors and nurses.
Until the operation , thankfully, got her back on track.
The recovery ahead
The third life-saving operation was quite intrusive and the recovery will be much longer than anticipated. Sal will not be able to work for a few months and even then, will probably need to return to work part time, on light duties. She will also require more surgery next year, to reverse the stoma formation, requiring even more time off work.
Complicating all of this is Sal’s past medical history. Those of you who know Sal well, know she had a stroke in 2014. Although her visible symptoms are now minimal, it has and will continue to cause some potential challenges for Sal and the medical team on how they manage her recovery.
For now, we are just so grateful to still have our Sal.
And on a positive note, Sal has been informed by her medical team that they have removed all of the cancerous tumour with no signs it has spread anywhere else.
Finally, some good news, which means we can all now focus on the recovery.
Who is Sally Bramwell?
Sally Bramwell is a 38 soon to be 39 year old strong, independent, caring, thoughtful, intelligent woman.
Sal is the daughter of two loving parents - Sue and Tony; the younger sister of three caring older brothers - Tim, Chris and Jonno; and sister-in-law to three wonderful women - Tara, Bec and Hayley. Sal is also the Aunty to three spirited nieces and one nephew who love their Aunty Sal very much and have a lot of fun getting up to hijinx and playing together. Sal also has a partner, Tim, who she has been committed to for almost three years and is a favourite person in his 9 year-old daughter’s life. Oh, and I almost forgot, she is the proud mother of her dog, Ashes!
Sal loves her sport, especially the Geelong Cats (sorry about the preliminary final this year, Sal…) and is an art lover who has painted and drawn since a young age - a skill inherited from her Dad, Tony. She is what you would consider to be a true Melbournian - loving both the arts and sport with the same heart. Sal lives to laugh and make others happy and is a great support to others when things get rough for them. Sal has a non-judgmental listening ear that I have had the very good luck to have in my life since the age of 5.
I couldn’t do this world without Sal. Our dreams are wrapped into one, such as the pipe dreams of a comedic-musical duo that runs a second hand book/wine store . We have agreed she will run the purchasing department (as her profession is procurement) and I will shoot the breeze with the customers (as I am a librarian) - though Sal, can really do both, being the people-person we know and love her to be.
So while things are a bit tough for Sal at the moment, I am so glad we got some good news about the cancer being removed. Because basically I need her by my side for the next 40 years or so.
One final anecdote
There is a final anecdote about Sal that I must share with you. After Sal’s third operation, I visited her on the Monday evening after work. Upon entering her hospital room, she looked up at me with concerned eyes and the first thing she said to me was, “How are you?” Sal was asking how I was after she just had her life-saving operation. That sums up the person our Sal is and always will be.
Thank you for reading
And lastly, thank you for taking the time to read about Sally Bramwell’s situation.
If you have a few dollars to spare, it would be gratefully received.
But, as mentioned earlier, no one will be measured on their capacity to give.
Bec
Organizer and beneficiary
Rebecca Karge
Organizer
Yarraville, VIC
Sally Bramwell
Beneficiary