Telethon 2023: How PCH kids cancer ward helped Little Telethon Star Emily Houston in leukaemia fight

Little Telethon Star Emily Houston has had a lot to contend with in her life after being diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia at just four years old.

After a long battle, the seven-year-old recently reached a special milestone in her road to recovery, getting to ring the bell to signal a big victory over cancer when she finished her last round of chemotherapy treatment.

The big moment came just a week before she found out she was going to be a Little Telethon Star to help encourage West Australians to dig a bit deeper for sick kids across WA.

Emily’s dad Brian Houston said he never thought the day she rang the treatment bell would come.

“Emily ringing the bell was kind of surreal as when she first got diagnosed it felt like those days would never come. It was an awesome day,” he said.

It has been a long two-and-a-half-year journey for the Harvey family, who had to pack up their lives overnight and effectively move to Perth from the South West when Emily received her diagnosis.

“Being given a leukaemia diagnosis your life basically turns upside down,” Mr Houston said.

“We had to leave home pretty much straight away. We got called into Bunbury Hospital one evening and basically from the next morning we had to come to the Perth Children’s Hospital and we never left Perth.”

An abundance of Telethon beneficiaries helped Emily and her family get through her treatment including the Perth Children’s Hospital oncology ward, the Make-A-Wish Foundation, and the Perth Kids Cancer Support Group.

“Everybody was fantastic. They not only did a lot for Emily but also a lot for the parents in the wards,” Mr Houston said.

Emily loves her oncology team so much that she was granted a very special Make-A-Wish funded by Telethon — to become “Hulk” and save her team from an attack.

She went through superhero training before getting the emergency call and with the help of Spider-Man and her big sister Jessica, Emily defeated the villain Loki and saved the team that helped save her.

Thanks to the generosity of the WA community, Telethon donations supported the redevelopment of the oncology and burns outdoor recreation and therapy garden at PCH.

The current outdoor area was not fit for purpose, which means immuno-compromised children have nowhere to play as they are unable to go into other areas of the hospital because of the risk of infection.

The new area, which will include a therapy garden and playground, will offer the children a safe location to get away from their treatment and enjoy some fresh air.

The space will also mean children can undergo their therapy outside rather than in the confines of a ward and would also give siblings a chance to play outside after spending long hours in the hospital.

The playground is set to help families of kids like Emily, who has been in and out of the oncology ward for years.

Emily is set to bring cheekiness to her important role as a Little Telethon Star this weekend.

She said wasn’t nervous at all about being on live TV just “excited”.

“I’m excited to meet Jimmy Barnes and I’m looking forward to the conga (line),” she said.

Emily said West Australians would have to tune in to see her outfits for the Telethon extravaganza as they were “top secret”.