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Home / Entertainment

Blue Wiggle's heartwarming act for fellow army veteran fighting terminal cancer

By Jack Paynter
news.com.au·
12 Jul, 2021 01:06 AM3 mins to read

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The beloved Blue Wiggle Anthony Field has pledged the royalties from his next album to Brendan Nikolajew's family. Photo / Getty Images

The beloved Blue Wiggle Anthony Field has pledged the royalties from his next album to Brendan Nikolajew's family. Photo / Getty Images

The family of an Australian Army veteran with terminal cancer has been given a boost thanks to the heartwarming generosity of the blue Wiggle.

Anthony Field has pledged to donate the royalties from his new album "Lullabies with Love" to Brendan Nikolajew's wife Leah and their two children, Georgie and Roman.

Brendan Nikolajew, who fought for the country as an artilleryman in Afghanistan, has beaten testicular cancer three times.

But in November last year, the 29-year-old found out the cancer was back and was given a devastating terminal diagnosis from his doctor.

His oncologist told him the cancer had spread, and he was given just six to 12 months to live.

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Nikolajew, who lives in Brisbane, has also been diagnosed with pneumonia and is now receiving palliative home care.

Last week he said he had been given only days to live but would keep fighting to try to beat the disease.

"I'm fighting as hard as possible to beat pneumonia at home, we have the palliative home care team come everyday and that'll be indefinite, they've helped so much and it's way better than being in hospital," he posted on a GoFundMe page.

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"I want to win, I want to live and I'm going to give it my all, I was given days to live and I now feel with all the support and self belief, I can win."

It's now been revealed that Field, also an army veteran and co-founder of the biggest children's entertainment group in the world, has thrown his support behind the Nikolajews as Brendan fights to beat cancer.

Field has taken his name off every track of the new Wiggles album, released in early June, and replaced it with Nikolajew's.

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It means that all the co-writing royalties from the album will go directly to support his wife and their children.

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Field told Sense Music Media the royalties would go to the family for a few years, and every so often they would receive some money from the release.

And if the Wiggles are nominated for an ARIA award this year, Field said Nikolajew's kids were going to come.

"I've been on the journey with him for quite a few months now," he told the publication.

"He's one of those guys who you talk to and he just brightens up your life, even though he's going through the worst you could be going through."

A GoFundMe for the family has raised more than $120,000 to help pay for treatment, medication and living expenses.

Nikolajew was the sole income provider for the family, with Leah off work while looking after their young children, and the couple received the heartbreaking terminal diagnosis just three days before they moved into their home.

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