Jarni Greaterox: East Gippsland teen diagnosed with extremely rare cancer

An East Gippsland teen has become one of four family members struck down by cancer, and shockingly hers is the rarest of them all.

An East Gippsland teen has been diagnosed with an extremely rare form of cancer a year after her mother went through her own battle having also lost her parents to the disease.

Jarni Greatorex received the shocking news she was one in 37 people worldwide to be diagnosed days after her 16th birthday earlier this month.

Her mother, Jessie Dean who was diagnosed with cancer in September 2020, said her daughter’s harrowing journey began in March last year.

Jarni, “the light of many worlds”, was flown from their home near Bairnsdale to hospital with severe shoulder pain.

“She had a clot in her jugular vein in her neck which ran down to her elbow and more clots in her chest,” Jessie said.

Doctors ran tests, took biopsies and ruled her a “diagnostic dilemma” after six weeks, and she went home with no answers.

Then in January this year, she was struggling to breathe and she was flown back to the hospital again.

She underwent major chest surgery which involved collapsing her lungs to access her sternum and finally doctors found the cause.

Her body was at the point of breaking and she was placed into an induced coma.

Now she is in intensive care with two machines draining her lungs and is on a curative treatment plan.

She can’t leave her room without two nurses by her side.

Despite it all, she’s got a “smile on her face”.

“As of today, it’s been a month since I’ve been in hospital (again). I miss home and I’m stressed about all the schoolwork I have to catch up on,” Jarni said.

“But my birthday was nice, everyone made it special for me.”

Jarni spent her 16th birthday in hospital. Picture: Facebook

Jarni is determined to keep fighting despite her rare diagnosis.

Jarni’s mum says her daughter is always smiling.

Shockingly, this is the fourth cancer diagnosis for Jarni’s family.

In 2015 her grandmother, Heather Dean, died from cancer “no one knew she had”.

“No warning, no trigger, nothing – she went in for her diabetes, was diagnosed with cancer then three weeks later she was gone,” Jessie said.

Six months later, Jessie spent 11 days in the same hospital room her mum died in battling her own health scare, portal vein thrombosis.

Later, in 2020, Jessie’s dad, Brian Dean, was taken to hospital and doctors discovered spots on his liver.

A week and a half later, he was dead.

Seven days after his funeral, Jessie was diagnosed with esophageal cancer – rare in a 39-year-old woman.

Jessie said her daughter was “brilliant” and would help care for her siblings while her mum had treatment.

“She would make tea for everyone and would growl at her younger brothers when I couldn’t,” she said.

Jarni and her brothers; Jacob 13 (left) and Jeremy 11 (right)

Jessie, Jarni and Nana, Val Greatorex on her birthday

But now Jessie’s heart is breaking as she watches her daughter go through her own cancer battle.

“I really didn‘t want her outdoing my cancer diagnosis, mine was rare enough but she had to go 10 steps further,” she said.

Despite her rare diagnosis they are determined “to beat it”.

“We’ve got to stay positive, because she’s only 16. So we are keeping her spirits up and she’s still got a smile on her face,” Jessie said.

A GoFundMe page was created to help take Jarni to Tasmania for a holiday.

She’s been there before on a school camp but she wants to go back this time to visit Port Arthur with her family.

“We want to make as many memories with her as we can, if we can afford it, we will do whatever,” Jessie said.

“She’s unbelievable, she inspires me and she will beat this.”