Victorian Minister Jaala Pulford fought tears as she spoke about her teen daughter’s cancer death

Jaala Pulford has shared the heartbreaking final days of her teenage daughter’s life, saying “she knew she was dying, we had quite an extraordinary conversation about it”.

Jaala Pulford, with her husband Jeff, son Hamish and a photo of their daughter, Sinead who died after a short battle with cancer. Picture: Sarah Matray.

Victorian politician Jaala Pulford has spoken about the unfathomable heartbreak and tragedy of losing her teenage daughter to cancer.

Ms Pulford, who is the Minister for Employment, Innovation, Medical Research and Small Business, tearfully told of the moment her daughter, Sinead, passed away, aged 13, in 2014.

“My Sinead stories have been stuck in a time warp since 2014,” Ms Pulford said in an emotion-charged speech at the Million Dollar Lunch at Crown Palladium on Friday.

“Sinead was smart and sassy. She was unusually self-assured. She was a doting and protective big sister and a loyal friend. I miss her with every breath I take,” Ms Pulford said.

The annual lunch event raises money for the Children’s Cancer Foundation and again smashed the $2 million mark.

After the event Ms Pulford tweeted about giving her exceptionally difficult, highly personal speech: “Just about fkn killed me but helped the Children’s Cancer Foundation raise $2.27m today,” she revealed.

Victorian politician Jaala Pulford’s daughter Sinead.

Fighting back tears, with her voice breaking, Ms Pulford said: “I watch the life that cancer denied Sinead vicariously through her closest friends.

“Jobs and courses, tattoos, boyfriends, ex-boyfriends, oompa loompa fake tan, travels and gap years, and that weird eyelash thing that’s all the go at the moment.

Just about fkn killed me but helped the Children’s Cancer Foundation raise $2.75 m today 💛 pic.twitter.com/z6DppFz1qv

— Jaala Pulford MP (@JaalaPulford) August 19, 2022

“My son calls them his back up sisters and they are my back up daughters. We’re all very grateful to have them in our lives.”

She recalls the exact time her precious daughter died: December 12, just after 5am.

“She knew that she was dying, we had quite an extraordinary conversation about it days earlier,” Ms Pulford said. “She was displeased, to say the least, but she was understanding and accepting of it.

“She was in her room in her bed, her long-time companion, a very scruffy old doll called Millie was under her arm … (and) fingernails at full glamour from what was her last ever outing, a trip with me to the nail salon three weeks earlier.

“Some 20 hours earlier, the palliative care doctor said this was likely (Sinead’s) last 24 hours, so we set up a roster of sorts.”

In Sinead’s final moments, Ms Pulford held her daughter’s hand tightly.

“I told her how much we loved her, and how strong she had been, how proud of her we were, how it was OK for her to go now, and that we would always love her,” Ms Pulford said.

“She took a deep breath and squeezed my hand goodbye, and then she was gone.”