Ken Bodinnar, a 73-year-old former State Emergency Service worker from Paynesville, is fighting to have his workers' compensation claim recognised. His doctors believe his small-cell lung cancer resulted from years of service, including the Black Saturday fires. The insurer rejected the claim, and a medical report later found his exposure to firefighting smoke and diesel fumes was a significant contributing factor. The dispute will go to trial in November. Mr Bodinnar is in intensive care in Geelong and hopes the claim will support his family.
Wyndham local David Hatfield says he was 12 when his mother was diagnosed with bowel cancer, and she died within nine months of a later liver cancer diagnosis. In 2025, Mr Hatfield, 48, was diagnosed with kidney cancer after an emergency visit to Stawell Hospital during a holiday in the Grampians. He says being diagnosed himself gave him a deeper understanding of his mother's experience. Ahead of Canteen's Bandanna Day on 29 October, he is asking people to listen to the stories of those affected and support the organisation's work.
The Lions Club of Ballan will hold a community market on Saturday, November 7, on Inglis Street. All proceeds from the market will go to the McGrath Foundation, which places free cancer care nurses across Australia. The club held its October market, but rain forced it to be postponed a month. Stalls will sell handcrafted goods, clothing and jewellery, along with a barbecue, a raffle and Christmas cakes and puddings. The market runs from 9am to 1pm.
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Jolene, one half of the couple competing on The Block, says her mother Janelle will not be able to attend the auctions. Janelle is battling lung cancer and has had complications with some treatments. Jolene said her mother had been her biggest supporter throughout the competition and had visited the main renovation areas. Jolene also said she wished she had let her guard down more with other contestants and had more fun. The Block auction airs Sunday at 7pm on 9Now and the Nine Network.
Geelong golfer Robert Palermo will play 72 holes on 9 November in The Longest Day, a Cancer Council challenge to raise money for cancer prevention and support. He is taking part in memory of his father, Vince, who died of cancer in 2022 three months after being diagnosed. Palermo's son is joining the team this year. He had raised more than $2000 as of 20 October. Cancer Council Victoria says one in two Victorians is expected to be diagnosed with cancer by age 85.
Former NRL star Nathan Merritt faces drug and gun charges, and his father says he is seriously ill. Police raided Merritt's Marrickville home on Thursday, hours after a ram raid on a Fendi store in the Sydney CBD. Merritt has not been charged over the ram raid. Police allege he possessed cocaine and a pistol, and he spent a night in custody. Merritt, 43, has said he has months to live with liver and oesophageal cancer. He is on bail and is due back in court in early November.
Julio Villamil, a 24-year-old who came to Sydney from Colombia to study English, has been diagnosed with a rare cancer. Through the HammondCare LifeStories program, he worked with composer Stephen Rae on a hip-hop song called What Really Matters, in which he shares messages of hope. Mr Villamil has had several rounds of chemotherapy and is in palliative care. His clinician says he needs the drug Enhertu, which costs $7000 a month and is not on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.
Comedian Magda Szubanski says she felt terrified and isolated as a young gay person, and that Melbourne University saved her by giving her a sense of safety. She publicly came out in 2012 during Australia's same-sex marriage campaign. Szubanski later described being diagnosed with a rare, aggressive stage-4 mantle cell lymphoma last year. She says she is now in deep remission after chemotherapy, and that the diagnosis has changed her outlook on life.
A personalised cancer vaccine has cut the risk of melanoma recurrence and death by 42 per cent, according to an Australian-led phase 3 trial. Melanoma Institute Australia medical director Georgina Long said the result was higher than she expected. The treatment combines a vaccine made from each patient's tumour with the immunotherapy pembrolizumab after surgery. The trial included 1,137 patients across 157 sites worldwide, including several in Australia. Regulatory review could take several years, and the treatment is not yet available.
A personalised mRNA vaccine has significantly reduced the risk of melanoma recurrence or death in a clinical trial. The Australian-led study involving 1,137 patients found that the vaccine, intismeran, combined with pembrolizumab, lowered the risk by 42% compared to pembrolizumab alone. Prof Georgina Long described the findings as a major shift in cancer treatment, allowing for a more personalised approach to harnessing the immune system. The results will be presented at the European Society for Medical Oncology’s annual congress and are awaiting peer review for publication in the New England Journal of Medicine.
A world-first clinical trial led by Professor Georgina Long has tested an mRNA-based vaccine to lower the risk of melanoma returning after surgery. The trial included 1137 patients at very high risk of recurrence who had not previously received cancer drug treatment. Among those given the vaccine, the risk of death or recurrence fell by 42 per cent. Associate Professor Seth Cheetham said each patient receives a unique drug, a approach he believes could extend to other cancers. Melanoma is among the most common cancers in Australia, and is the most common cancer among Australians aged 20 to 39.
Harold Alford, known as the pink man, is a well-known figure in the Queensland town of Kilcoy. The 85-year-old wears pink to raise awareness of breast cancer, a cause driven by the loss of his wife Gladys to the disease. He was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer and has chosen not to undergo treatment. Through Pink Up Kilcoy, the town has raised about $30,000 for McGrath Foundation cancer care nurses. Alford says regional patients need nurses who can care for them at home.
Gerringong man Alex Righton, 33, is living with cholangiocarcinoma, a rare cancer of the bile ducts. He was diagnosed after surgery for an unrelated gallbladder removal. His wife Kelly says little is known about the disease, and doctors often lack data to recommend treatments. The family is raising money for research through the 7 Bridges Walk, a 28 km Cancer Council event across Sydney bridges. They have raised more than $7500, beyond their $5000 goal.
Mackay indoor golfers are supporting Cancer Council Queensland through X-Golf for Good, a national fundraising campaign running across October and November 2026. X-Golf Mackay chose the charity as its partner. Players can compete in indoor golf challenges, including a team scramble from 26 to 30 October and a Community Night on 29 October. Residents can also donate through a QR code at the venue, or buy chips that send $2 per serving to the campaign. A national silent auction runs during the final two weeks.
West Coast Relay for Life 2026 will be held at Arena Joondalup this weekend, with Warwick Senior High School leading the fundraising effort. The school has raised almost $24,000, with Year 10 co-ordinator Anthony Mayo credited for the success. The event, organised by Cancer Council WA, aims to raise funds for cancer research and support services. Warwick SHS associate principal Jason Tomlinson noted the school's consistent strong performance in the event.
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OpenAI's venture capital arm and Peter Thiel's Founders Fund are investing in Coherence Neuro, a startup developing a brain implant to detect and treat cancer. The investments are part of a $45 million seed funding round. Coherence's chief executive, Ben Woodington, says AI models can help read the large volumes of brain data these devices produce. The company tested its implant briefly on three patients at the Royal Melbourne Hospital and plans a long-term clinical trial in patients with glioblastoma, an aggressive brain cancer. Woodington says OpenAI will not have access to the company's brain or health data.
Breast cancer survivor Karen Humphries called on the community to support the carers of people with cancer. She spoke at the Moe Racing Club pink race day meeting while launching her second book, Holding the Helper: Supporting the Cancer Caregiver. Humphries said carers often take on new roles without training, pay or recognition, and many never ask for help. She urged friends and neighbours to offer concrete help, such as bringing a meal or taking on school pickups, rather than general offers. The book covers the caregiving journey from before diagnosis through to recovery.
The Moe Racing Club raised $50,305.35 for Latrobe Regional Health at its annual pink race day, exceeding its $30,000 target. Funds came from course entry, raffles, auctions, and donations, with bookmakers also contributing. The event featured Racing.com’s Gemma Rielly as emcee and local musician Mick Harrington performing. Proceeds will support the Gippsland Cancer Wellbeing Centre, a facility offering physical and emotional care for cancer patients.
Cancer patients in Melbourne's outer west are facing rising travel and fuel costs because there is no local public radiation therapy service. Some travel 50 to 100 kilometres each day to Sunshine, Parkville or Geelong for treatment. The Better Cancer Care campaign is calling on both major parties to commit to a public radiation therapy facility near Werribee Mercy Public Hospital before the November state election. The group says about 440,000 people live across Melton, Werribee, Tarneit, Point Cook and Lara. The state government and the Victorian Liberal Party were contacted for comment.
