Diagnosed during the pandemic: Renae’s story

Picture this – it was the year 2021 and Melbourne had just come out of its 5th lockdown. Renae and her partner, Sam escaped the 5km radius and went to the beach. Renae remembers feeling a lump in her throat which she thought could have been tonsillitis. One doctor’s visit changed Renae’s life – she was diagnosed with anaplastic large T-cell lymphoma.

Renae talks about what it was like to be diagnosed during the Covid-19 pandemic in Melbourne, and how hospital restrictions impacted her support network during some of the toughest times of her treatment.