‘Became like family’: Cancer service offers lifeline for Cairns parents

The parents of a teenage son who lost his battle with a rare tumour have turned their heartache into a mission to help others discover services that can help during their darkest hour.

SINCE Stacey and Rick Steer’s 13-year-old son lost his battle with a rare tumour, the Cairns couple have dedicated themselves to raising awareness of Childhood Cancer Support in the hopes of helping other families.

Mrs Steer remembers her son, Hudson, – or “Huddy” – as charismatic, intelligent and kind.

“He was such a bright spark,” she said.

“He was a dancer, and he was involved in community theatre, but he was also a basketballer and a futsal player. So he just seemed to make connections wherever he went.”

In October 2018, Huddy was a regular eighth grader getting on with his busy life when some bladder problems alerted the family that something wasn’t right.

Rick, Stacey and Campbell Steer are dedicated to raising funds and awareness for Childhood Cancer Support, after their son and brother, Hudson, lost his battle with Embryonal Rhabdomyosarcoma, a soft tissue tumor at the base of his bladder.

With no paediatric oncologists in Cairns, the Steers travelled to Townsville where Huddy was diagnosed with Embryonal Rhabdomyosarcoma, a soft tissue tumour at the base of his bladder.

From there everything moved at warp-speed, Mrs Steer recalls. Huddy was airlifted to the Queensland Children’s Hospital in Brisbane, and the family barely had a moment to think of the difficult decisions they were facing.

With their eldest son, Campbell, finishing Year 12 in Cairns – not to mention a mortgage to pay – Rick would have to stay in the Far North while Stacey relocated to Brisbane for Huddy’s treatment.

This was when Childhood Cancer Support reached out, offering Mrs Steer and Huddy free, furnished accommodation in Brisbane, transport to hospital and access to support services.

The organisation helps families from across regional Australia who need treatment at the Queensland Children’s Hospital.

Hudson Steer with his dad, Rick. Hudson lost his long battle with childhood cancer after being diagnosed aged 13 with Embryonal Rhabdomyosarcoma, a soft tissue tumor at the base of his bladder. The family is raising money for Childhood Cancer Support.

“We just can’t thank them enough. We’re so grateful, and will forever be grateful, for the support that they gave us and Hudson during that time,” Mrs Steer said.

Mrs Steer said more than the crucial financial and administrative help, Childhood Cancer Support meant she and Huddy had people around them who “became like family”.

Their unit was located with several other families going through a similar ordeal, along with on-site social workers.

“You can feel extremely lonely when you get separated from your family and you’re going through such an ordeal,” she said.

“There was always someone around either for the kids or for the adults themselves, and it was also reassuring when the kids got really unwell … you could actually know that your neighbours would totally understand what was going on if you needed to call an ambulance in the night.”

Mrs Steer and Huddy stayed with Childhood Cancer Support for 14 months, before Hudson died in 2020, two weeks shy of his 15th birthday.

Mrs Steer is calling on Cairns people to volunteer or donate to the “amazing service”.

“It’s one that you never know you’ll need until you actually need it … and there’s certainly a number of Cairns families that have had to use that service.”

Originally published as ‘Became like family’: Cancer service offers lifeline for Cairns parents