GenQ - For the not so straight individual

"Andrew, you need to have urgent surgery on your brain tumor, it is growing out of control and if you don't have it treated, you won't see christmas." This is what I was told 14 months ago by my neurologist. The catch, the operation could only be done by specialists and that would cost me over $20,000. My other option was to have radiation therapy, the benefit of this was that I could do it as a public patient and there would be little down time. The risk was that there was a chance the tumor could continue growing, and then surgery would no longer be an option or, worse still, it could turn maligant and spread throughout my brain. Both ways I would be dead.

What to do? How is Kylie Minogue involved in this?

One of my best friends is celebrity witch Fiona Horne. I called her in LA and told her my dilemma, I needed to raise $20,000. "No worries Andrew, I can help." Fiona contacted friends in the media and organised for me to be interviewed by a leading women's magazine here in Australia.Fiona would do that story with me and even get her friend Dannii Minogue to be involved. So we put together my story of how I was an up and coming Musical Director who lost his hearing due to the brain tumor and how some of my celebrity friends were trying to help me raise money for my operation and post-op care. We were all ready to go with it. Then disaster struck.

The same week that my story was due to run, Kylie was diagnosed with breast cancer.

The magazine called and said that my story was no longer going to be run, that I wasn't important and who would be interested in hearing about an unknown gay man with a brain tumor? Kylie's news was much bigger. So my decision was made for me. I was forced to take the risk of radiation therapy. So Kylie with all her support and millions of dollars was treated to all the best care, me with no support, alone was forced to endure radiation therapy, in the public health system. Just another number. Given a blood clot in my arm because they left the canular in too long and then having to endure 12 months of waiting to see if the tumor was in remission or inoperable.

The moral to this story? Just because you are not a pop star, doesn't mean that your life is any more or less important than anyone else's. That everyone should be entitled to the same good treatment if they are diagnosed with a life threatening condition. That real people are not news worthy. I don't hate Kylie.

If you have a story of your own you would like to share, please let us know. We will publish it. You don't have to be famous to have your story told.

Dream it. Be it.

Roo
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