Tucking into a delicious Christmas roast dinner from your hospital bed is not quite the same as sitting around a table with family and friends on the day.

“The hospital will try, and they really make Christmas feel special, but nothing compares to the real thing,” says 25-year-old Hirini Johnston who was diagnosed with acute lymphocytic leukaemia when he was 12.

“The potential for traditions like Christmas dinner and opening presents not happening is really hard to take,” he says.

CanTeen Aotearoa has launched its Christmas appeal with the aim of raising $100,000 as well as highlighting how difficult the festive season is for rangatahi impacted by cancer. The funds will enable CanTeen to continue to provide vital support to rangatahi who are dealing with their own cancer diagnosis, a sibling or parent with cancer, or the death of a loved one.

Impact hits home

Hirini, who recovered fully from his cancer after three and a half years of treatment and five years of health monitoring, remembers his first Christmas with cancer in 2009.

“I felt sorry for my family because it was a much smaller Christmas than they were used to,” he says. “Even if you’re not having Christmas in hospital, you are still immune compromised – so large family gatherings don’t work.”

Nick Laing, CanTeen’s CEO, says dealing with the death of a parent or sibling can be compounded for rangatahi on special days like Christmas Day.

“These days can become special occasions when you remember a loved one in a positive way, but for rangatahi, the most difficult thing is coming to terms with how to deal with the day itself.

“The first time is often the hardest because you can’t imagine what it will be like without them. There is no right or wrong way to approach these special occasions after loss. The lead up to the day can be worse than the actual day so talking about it openly with parents and other family members, and making sure there is enough support, is important.”

Peer support is key

In New Zealand, around 4,200 new rangatahi are impacted by cancer each year, whether it is their own diagnosis or cancer in their whānau. Additionally, every day a rangatahi hears their sibling has been diagnosed with cancer, and 10 rangatahi find out a parent has cancer.

Hirini, now a CanTeen board member director, says for teenagers living with cancer, peer support is essential because they are at an age where their friend network is just as important, if not more so, than family.

“Being a teenager or a young adult is a time where you’re very much looking for belonging outside of your family, and forming your own groups,” he says.

“As a teenager you’re trying to figure out your individuality and then you throw cancer in the mix. It’s challenging. CanTeen is there to help.

“CanTeen provided me with a way to build networks and have support from people my own age. It gives a young person control in a situation that is very often not within their control.”

The organisation supports rangatahi with individual support and therapy, peer support events, therapeutic programmes and camps, specialised online support, and rangatahi development.

It’s the little things …

Hirini, who works as a data advisor at the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, knows how fortunate he is to have recovered.

Even today, for Hirini it’s the little things that are often the most important.

“The things that people might brush over are often the most precious. That’s an impact of the ‘Big C’, where everyday moments make you stop and think, ‘Actually this is really cool’.

“I was at a Halloween party this year – an absolute rager – and I was watching my mates and I was like, ‘Look at all these people busy being alive, isn’t it cool’.”

CanTeen Aotearoa, the only organisation in New Zealand dedicated to providing tailored support for rangatahi impacted by cancer, receives no direct government funding and relies on the community’s generosity to provide its services.

To support rangatahi impacted by cancer across Aotearoa go to www.donate.canteen.org.nz

© Scoop Media