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Speaker 1: I might recall last year on the show, we spoke

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Speaker 1: to the family of a nine year old Territory girl

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Speaker 1: who's battling brain cancer after a number of footy stars

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Speaker 1: shared videos on social media in an effort to lift

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Speaker 1: her spirits. She's now gone into remission, but her battle

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Speaker 1: is far from over, and her grandma, Tracy Dally, joins

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Speaker 1: me on the line right now. Good morning to you, Tracy.

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Speaker 2: Good morning, Katie.

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Speaker 1: Lovely to speak to you this morning. Now, how is

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Speaker 1: little Maliah going?

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Speaker 2: She is happy to be home, extremely happy to be home.

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Speaker 1: I bet she is.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, it's been a long time.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, tell me a bit, like tell me you know,

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Speaker 1: from what I can see, she's gone into remission. But

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Speaker 1: so that is obviously fantastic news from the outset.

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Speaker 2: Great news, yep, great news. But it's a long it's

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Speaker 2: a long journey from now. Still.

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Speaker 1: I can't even imagine, you know, what the last year

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Speaker 1: has been like for her and for you guys.

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Speaker 2: It's been hard, especially being so far away. Like it's

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Speaker 2: sad on a probably on a negative note, but it's

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Speaker 2: so sad that our kids have to go to another

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Speaker 2: state to get treatment. You know, it's taking kids away

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Speaker 2: from family, from home, from everything they know. But in

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Speaker 2: a positive note, it's where the treatment is worth it.

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Speaker 1: And you know, this is the thing it is. It's

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Speaker 1: treatment that is absolutely essential from what I know. In

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Speaker 1: Melia's case, you know, she's she's obviously had surgery, chemotherapy, radiation. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: how hard has that been for her?

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Speaker 2: Very very very hard. But she's incredibly strong, she always

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Speaker 2: has been. She just takes it as it comes. Physically,

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Speaker 2: it's taken the most, but mentally it's also affected her.

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Speaker 1: Tell me about some of the impacts, you know, in

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Speaker 1: terms of the effect mentally. You know, for an adult

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Speaker 1: going through a cancer journey, it's so tough, but for

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Speaker 1: a little girl, you know, it's a whole other level.

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Speaker 2: Absolutely, because kids live in the moment, so they don't think.

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Speaker 2: In a way, kids thinking in the moment is a

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Speaker 2: good thing because they don't think about the future that mentally,

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Speaker 2: it's been like she has changed so much mentally. She's

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Speaker 2: been away from her best friend which is her brother,

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Speaker 2: her family life, her home, and now she's trying to

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Speaker 2: just fit in again. But she's been socially isolated, which

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Speaker 2: is really hard for any kid.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, and I mean you touched on it. Then just

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Speaker 1: a little while ago, the fact that our that our

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Speaker 1: youths when they are battling such a difficult situation like

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Speaker 1: Maliah has that. You know, you're grateful obviously for that

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Speaker 1: supporting to state, but she it's tough going not only

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Speaker 1: on her but on your family in terms of somebody

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Speaker 1: being with her there all the time. The financial stress

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Speaker 1: of that, I can't imagine that.

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Speaker 2: Oh absolutely, If it wasn't for the ghost on me

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Speaker 2: and the kindness of other people, it wouldn't it would

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Speaker 2: have been it would have been just the worst situation

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Speaker 2: because those people paid for flight flights, were donated once

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Speaker 2: by Max's cuss three cure. You know, people donated, people

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Speaker 2: helped in everywhere they could, which I'd like to say

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Speaker 2: thank you while we're out there, but you know, everything

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Speaker 2: costs money. Everything flights, you know, clothes just to go

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Speaker 2: to Sydney, you have to buy winter clothes. You know,

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Speaker 2: it's just you know, getting them back. They did have

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Speaker 2: fuel vouchers, but you know we had to still help

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Speaker 2: out with accommodation and it is it's a huge financial burden.

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Speaker 2: It really was. Thank God for the ghost on me.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, and you just mentioned then Max's cast for a cure.

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Speaker 1: Lincoln and Naomi, they are an incredible couple and what

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Speaker 1: they do through maxis cast for a cure after their

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Speaker 1: own loss is It's amazing, isn't it? The way that

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Speaker 1: the Northern Territory community does come out to support each other.

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Speaker 2: Absolutely. Naomi is incredibly strong, incredibly and to help others

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Speaker 2: is It's huge. It's huge. She's an awesome person.

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Speaker 1: She truly is. Hey, tell me where are things at

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Speaker 1: for Malia in terms of going back to school? Is

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Speaker 1: she able to go back to schools?

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Speaker 2: There's a physio appointment this week, so we're hoping to

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Speaker 2: get the all clear, But of course Malia is immune

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Speaker 2: compromised now the chemo radiation or the treatment actually the

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Speaker 2: after effects. Of course, she is not immunized to anything.

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Speaker 2: So going to school is a little bit scary. Concerning germs,

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Speaker 2: her walking ability, her just general functioning abilities. We're hoping

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Speaker 2: this week to have a meeting at the school and

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Speaker 2: maybe just try her a few mornings a week because

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Speaker 2: she needs to be with other kids. She just she

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Speaker 2: needs that connection again. But yeah, we've just got to

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Speaker 2: see from Friday and see what happens.

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Speaker 1: Now what in terms of her recovery where what are

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Speaker 1: the next steps for her?

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Speaker 2: She will need still need intensive physio speech therapy, counseling,

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Speaker 2: definitely counseling. And you don't really know everything that's needed

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Speaker 2: until you take like a step at a time, because

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Speaker 2: it's it's you know, it's still a five year clearance

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Speaker 2: we need with scans and everything. But the recovery is

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Speaker 2: mainly from the treatment and of course where the brain

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Speaker 2: surgery was. No one really knows what stage she is

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Speaker 2: that education wise, learning wise, anything until we start.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, it's still it's still a long journey for you guys,

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Speaker 1: and a journey for Malia. I know her and her

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Speaker 1: brother are thick as leaves, aren't they.

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Speaker 2: They're very close?

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Speaker 1: How are they going?

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Speaker 2: Very good? He's so happy. He was actually he heard

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Speaker 2: a bang yesterday and he's like, Maya, Malaya, are you

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Speaker 2: right right? But she was sitting right next to you

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Speaker 2: on the couch. He didn't even see her. But yeah,

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Speaker 2: he's very protective, protective even more so I would imagine

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Speaker 2: after everything that she's gone through. Absolutely absolutely, and she

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Speaker 2: she she feeds off that too, because he is her

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Speaker 2: little backbone, so she needs that and she missed that.

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Speaker 1: A lot there's nothing like it, is there, that sibling

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Speaker 1: relationship and looking after each other, you know, I think it's, Yeah,

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Speaker 1: it is incredible and and you know, so I am

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Speaker 1: so happy to hear that Malia is in remission. And

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Speaker 1: I know that it is still a long journey for

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Speaker 1: her and your whole family, but I know that, you know,

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Speaker 1: there'll be so many people listening this morning who are

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Speaker 1: really so pleased to hear that she's in remission.

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Speaker 2: Yes, it's it's wonderful, and we're grateful for all the

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Speaker 2: support and help and well wishes, because it's that's all

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Speaker 2: it is now. It's well wishes, prayer and that new hope,

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Speaker 2: new beginning.

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Speaker 1: Tracy, she's a little football fan, isn't she. If you

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Speaker 1: had any more contact from any of the famous footy players,

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Speaker 1: any free tickets for her to get to go to

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Speaker 1: the footing.

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Speaker 2: No, no, she had tickets. Ronald McDonald's supplies to kids

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Speaker 2: with tickets all the time. Well that is.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, I bet she did. And I really hope that

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Speaker 1: when she is, you know, when she's feeling up to it,

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Speaker 1: and when she's able to, when you know her immune

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Speaker 1: system allows it, she is able to get some of

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Speaker 1: those things that. I'm sure she'd absolutely love to be

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Speaker 1: able to do.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, she'd be, she'd be. She went to football

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Speaker 2: Friday night actually to watch part playing Union, and she

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Speaker 2: sat on her phone the whole time to frighten up.

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Speaker 1: Oh goodness, oh too funny. Well, Tracy, it is lovely

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Speaker 1: to speak to you this morning. I really appreciate you

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Speaker 1: having a chat with us, And like I say, I know,

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Speaker 1: it's look, I know, no one can even imagine how

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Speaker 1: tough it's been for your family unless you've gone through it,

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Speaker 1: and I just think it's you know, it's really brave

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Speaker 1: of your family to continue to share her story as well.

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Speaker 1: I think it's a really important thing to do. So

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Speaker 1: we appreciate your time today.

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Speaker 2: Thank you, Katie, Thank you very much.

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Speaker 1: Thank you. We'll talk to you again soon, Hope. Good

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Speaker 1: on you, Tracy. Thank you,