Alex (front left) with his family for his Starlight Wish last October, before his relapse. Photo: Supplied.
Two days before his sixth birthday in 2022, Canberra boy Alex was diagnosed with a rare blood cancer. Late last year he was celebrating with 580 people that he had beaten the disease.
But in the weeks before Christmas 2025, something wasn’t quite right.
“Alex was doing really well; he had been off maintenance treatment since his eighth birthday [in March],” his mother, Brittany Melhuish, said.
“But we noticed in December that he was starting to become a little bit more tired.”
This was followed by Alex complaining of shoulder pain, which was fleeting and low-grade.
Then his leg began to hurt.
“In the weeks before Christmas, he started to limp, and that’s when I knew something was serious and very, very wrong,” Brittany said.
The now-nine-year-old was showing the same symptoms he’d had when he was diagnosed with cancer the first time.
Bloods were taken at the Canberra Hospital, but nothing nefarious showed up. Brittany insisted doctors look at his marrow as his leg pain worsened.
An MRI showed lesions on his right leg and the family was sent to Sydney for a bone marrow aspiration.
At 9 pm on Christmas Eve, the family received the call that confirmed Alex’s cancer had returned.
The now-nine-year-old boy is currently in Sydney receiving intensive induction chemotherapy protocol for B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
Brittany has taken leave without pay to stay with her boy, while her husband Alister is making sure their seven-year-old daughter’s routine isn’t disrupted in Canberra.
“Our family’s split up. There’s so much uncertainty, no normality. It’s expensive, and it’s really tough,” she said.
The last time Alex needed treatment was during the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. He also developed a severe internal fungal infection that covered his pelvis, liver, spleen and lungs.
He spent 188 nights in the hospital. The treatment sapped his strength; he needed to relearn how to walk, and he missed out on starting kindergarten.
This time, after three weeks of treatment, Alex’s hair has already started falling out and he’s experiencing the wretched side effects of chemotherapy, such as fatigue, nausea, vomiting and the associated effects of low blood counts. He’s also unable to walk unaided again.
Alex was first diagnosed with B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia shortly before his sixth birthday in 2022. Photo: Supplied.
It’s unclear how long Alex and Brittany will need to stay in Sydney this time, while Alister and their daughter travel the three-odd hours each way to visit.
If he responds to treatment, he’ll be classed as standard risk (like last time). If not, he’ll be high risk and potentially need a bone marrow transplant.
The uncertainty is an added stress.
“If it ends up that he needs bone marrow, I don’t even know what that entails,” Brittany said.
“We’re testing the entire family to see if we’re compatible [for a transplant].”
Siblings have a 1 in 4 chance of being a match, and parents have a 1 in 20 chance.
Brittany and the family have been receiving support from Win the Day, a charity formed by Googong mother and former Wallaroo Kristy Giteau.
It provides support and meals to families affected by childhood cancers.
Kristy has also set up a GoFundMe page for Alex to help with the financial stress.
“Because of the nature of his diagnosis, the treatment and the side effects that come with it, Alex does not get the luxury of normality. He requires full-time care. And because of that, his family must always be available – ready to drop everything to attend to his health needs as and when they arise,” she wrote on the fundraiser’s page.
“This is what childhood cancer really looks like.
“It is not just a medical journey. It is emotional exhaustion. Financial strain. Time away from work. Time away from siblings. Time away from anything that once felt predictable. It is parents doing everything they can to be strong while living in constant uncertainty. It is a child being asked to show bravery far beyond his years cumulatively.”
Brittany’s already been blown away by the generosity of those who have donated.
“Money is such a big aspect … we’ve still got a mortgage, daily expenses. It’s very, very stressful,” she said.
“What’s been given already is so incredibly helpful.”
Now, the family waits to find out how the disease will progress. And keep strong, for each other and for Alex.
