Like most six-year-old girls, Werribee’s Savannah Scifo loves chocolate, sparkles and fancy shoes.
But Savannah’s fight against the leukaemia that has overtaken her body proves she is no ordinary child.
Last November, Savannah was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, a form of cancer that starts from white blood cells in bone marrow.
The St Andrews Catholic Primary School pupil has been undergoing chemotherapy, and while her doctors are confident she will win her battle, the slightest illness can present a major hurdle.
She spent 16 days in the Royal Children’s Hospital in April after developing a cold sore.
“We were absolutely devastated when we found out she had cancer,’’ mother Suzanne Scifo says. ‘‘We didn’t event know how to react. If we could have it instead of her, we would.”
Savannah says the worst thing about being sick is getting needles.
Family friend David Fitzgerald is organising a fund-raising family fun day on Sunday, June 22 to help Savannah and her family.
“My wife and I were also devastated when we found out,” Mr Fitzgerald says. “Our daughter Stephanie is the same age. It could have easily been her … we just wanted to do something.”
The fun day, at Werribee Racecourse from 10am-5pm, will include a market with about 40 stalls, with most profits going to the Scifo family. There will also be pony rides and a jumping castle.
As for what she plans to do after she beats her illness, Savannah says she hopes to one day make chocolate for a living.
For more details about the fund-raiser, visit on.fb.me/1raVLSi.
