Tim Babbage with his wife Gillian and their daughter Eloise. Photo / GoFundMe
Tim Babbage with his wife Gillian and their daughter Eloise. Photo / GoFundMe
An Australian dad has been given a shocking diagnosis that will change his life forever.
Tim Babbage was enjoying a fishing trip with friends when he began to have an upset stomach. The pain led the father to assume he had indigestion, but as it got worse, it became clear this wasn’t the case.
A few weeks later, the 40-year-old builder was told he had stage 4 sarcoma: a rare and extremely deadly cancer in his abdomen. Scans discovered “a tumour the size of a house brick”, reports news.com.au.
In a matter of days following his devastating diagnosis, Babbage was booked into one of Australia’s leading cancer hospitals, Chris O’Brien Lifehouse.
A GoFundMe has been made to financially help Babbage, his pregnant wife Jill and their four-year-old daughter Eloise.
“This beautiful family in the prime of their life have been suddenly thrust into a world of the unknown with Tim’s sudden, heartbreaking cancer diagnosis,” said Alana Adolphs, who created the page.
She revealed that the couple had recently announced the exciting news of Jill’s pregnancy when Babbage was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer.
“The sarcoma is large, aggressive and spreading rapidly,” she shared.
“Tim has already commenced a gruelling regime of complex chemotherapies, with a full abdominal surgery scheduled for three to six months’ time.
“He will also undergo radiation therapy. All of this will take a huge toll on his body, all to give Tim the best possible chance of beating this monster.”
The 40-year-old, left, changed careers to become a builder. Photo / GoFundMe
Babbage confessed to the Daily Mail that it “all happened so fast”.
“I couldn’t believe it. And for it to be that big - [I’m] speechless,” he said.
Gillian described it as one of those things “where you think it could never happen to us”, adding “these are meant to be our dream years”.
Babbage was in the prime of his life, having changed careers to become a builder, being midway through renovations of their new home, a second child on the way and a bright future ahead.
The pair had planned for Babbage to be the sole breadwinner for a year. However, due to his worsening health condition, the couple’s plans have been dashed.
“I am taking unpaid maternity leave. We knew things would be tighter but now it feels like it will be impossible. I have looked around but because we have had good jobs and worked hard we don’t seem to qualify for help,” Gillian revealed to the Daily Mail.
As of now, the GoFundMe page has raised more than $70,000 (NZ$76,000) with Adolphs saying the family need “our support” more than ever.
“No donation is too small. Everything counts and is so appreciated,” she said.
