With a sister and daughter both working at Mater, Narelle Creplin had no doubts about where she would go if she ever needed hospital care.
So when the 58-year-old grandmother was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2007, the obvious choice was Mater.
Following her diagnosis, Narelle underwent a full hysterectomy. Three weeks later Narelle went back into hospital to have her appendix removed, followed by nearly five months of chemotherapy. Narelle was in remission for 16 months when told that the cancer had returned—this time located near her spleen. After another operation and chemotherapy for another four and a half months, Narelle has been in remission again for 16 months.
“When I was diagnosed I was shocked because I didn’t feel sick. But I knew that I’d be in good hands at Mater. My daughter is a nurse at Mater Private Hospital, and my sister is a theatre nurse at Mater Adult Hospital. I wouldn’t want to have gone anywhere else,” Narelle said.
“I know the exceptional level of care that my daughter and sister give to their patients, so I knew I would receive the same level of care while I was going through my treatment.”
Each year in Australia, 1500 women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Sadly, 850 women will die of the disease.
Little is known about what causes ovarian cancer and there is no screening test that detects it in its early stages. Researchers at Mater Medical Research Institute (MMRI) are currently in initial clinical trials to develop a simple blood test to screen for ovarian cancer and identify women who need further testing.
If you would like to support ovarian cancer research at MMRI, please contact Mater Foundation on 07 3163 8000.