After a milestone fundraising year in 2024, we are thrilled to once again reveal the little ambassadors of this year’s appeal, Mimi and Jack.

Mimi, four years old and Jack, six years old, have both been patients at The Royal Children’s Hospital since they were very young. They have both received life-saving treatment, Mimi for acute lymphoblastic leukemia and Jack for a brain tumour.

When Mimi turned one, the little hair she had started falling out. Herarents watched as her eyelashes and eyebrows disappeared.  She began treatment for alopecia, an autoimmune condition that causes hair loss. Her parents were told her hair may never return.

As part of her treatment, she required regular blood tests. In December 2023, one of these routine blood tests unexpectedly revealed something far more sinister — possible signs of leukaemia.

Mimi was urgently referred to The Royal Children’s Hospital (RCH)’s Emergency Department. Mimi’s parents, Mohamad and Fatina were convinced there’d been a mistake. Their bubbly, little girl appeared otherwise healthy.

“She was jumping all around, and she had this good energy,” Fatina said. “How could she be sick?”

Urgent tests confirmed the diagnosis – it was acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, a form of cancer.

Read more about Mimi’s story here

Jack, 6-years-old

Jack was 14-months-old when his parents, Misty and Rohan, noticed something wasn’t quite right. Jack was losing the few words he knew. All he could do was mumble in frustration. To make matters worse, Jack began to experience seizures, sometimes up to three times a day.

“He’d just go blank, he’d switch off. You could snap your fingers and get no response. 10 to 20 seconds later, he’d go back playing like nothing happened,” recalled Rohan. Misty said, “it was confronting and devastating to watch… it was almost like he knew it was coming.”

With no history of seizures in their family, they rushed him to their local practice.

“You try your best to get through every seizure. But what choice do you have as a parent? You’ve got to be there. You’ve got to catch him where you can and help him regain his faculties,” said Misty.

In early 2020 the family was urgently referred to The Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne (RCH).

After numerous tests, scans and admissions, it was confirmed that Jack had epilepsy.

A month on, things took a turn for the worse. Misty and Rohan got the news no parent wants to hear – Jack had a brain tumour.

Read more about Jack’s story here