Chloe Karis was just 10-years-old when her father was diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia.
Thankfully, Michael responded well to treatment and life continued as normal for the Darwin-based family.
Four years later, however, his cancer returned. This time, the news wasn't so good.
"We'd just returned from a family holiday to Melbourne, where dad had picked up a cold," Chloe tells 9Honey Parenting. "I remember him sniffling."
"Then I remember seeing mum on the phone in the backyard. I knew something wasn't right. I sat across from her trying to understand the conversation.
"She hung up and was crying ... and then she told me ... 'dad has cancer again'. And this time it was much more aggressive."
Chloe, then aged 13, went into shock. Sadly, this time her dad had less than a one per cent chance of surviving.
"I don't remember much after that," she recalls. "Everything shut down. I ran past my dad in the living room to hide how upset I was and down the street to my friend's place..."
Following her father's devastating diagnosis, the tween was forced to grow up quickly. She soon found herself in the role of carer, as her older brothers weren't living at home and her mum still had to work.
"My mum would try every at-home remedy she could to help with dad's health," Chloe explains. "She'd have bags and bags of fresh fruit and vegetable in the freezer for me to make him juices and smoothies in the morning when she wasn't home. And I used to make him cheese toasties."
Every day after school, as soon her mum finished work, they would drive straight down to the hospital.
"This is how I would spend my afternoons, just sitting with dad in his room," she reveals.
When a bone marrow transplant fell through, the family were told Michael had just one month to live.
"That was his final hope, so it was really hard to process," Chloe says. "I remember crying a lot."
"When he went into palliative care, my brothers and I would sit and play Pokémon by him. It was something easy to distract us from what was happening and kept conversation in the room."
Chloe's dad held on for seven months, before losing his battle with his family by his side.
Living in Darwin, Chloe knew no one dealing with cancer, let alone someone who had lost a parent.
The schoolgirl found herself feeling out of touch with her friends, misunderstood and isolated.
"No one understood what I was going through until I found Canteen," Chloe recalls. "One of the first things they did was give me some booklets to give to my friends. It contained information about different ways they could help and support me during my dad's cancer journey."
"I felt instant support because I was finally able to talk to people who had been through similar situations."
Now 22, the aspiring journalist is living in Melbourne and an ambassador for Canteen's biggest national fundraiser, Bandanna Day. She is sharing her story in the hope of helping other young people navigate the emotional journey of losing a parent.
"It was tough going back to school knowing no one who had lost a parent and I was the only one who had," she admits. "But now eight years on, I want to help people going through similar grief. I want to be that support."
"I basically lost my childhood but found myself to be able to find more positive outcomes with every situation since losing my dad."
It's not too late to make a donation or buy a bandanna for Canteen's Bandanna Day at bandannaday.org.au, raising vital funds to help ensure no young person has to experience cancer alone.
Source: honey.nine.com.au
