A Sydney mother has revealed the tragic way she lost her second child, as she appeals to Australians to commit to one simple act.
Petrina Hammond was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer in late 2021, shortly after finding out she was pregnant with her second child, Arthur ('Artie' for short).
After giving birth to her stillborn baby Artie at 17.5 weeks, Mrs Hammond underwent 12 rounds of chemotherapy, followed by extensive surgery.
Parts of her intestines, both ovaries, spleen and parts of her liver were removed, along with part of her pancreas, leaving her in desperate need of four blood transfusions in the days that followed.
There were no warning signs for this mother of two, who thought her pain and discomfort were caused by pregnancy complications.
'The fact that I was pregnant at the time made myself and all the doctors a lot more cautious. I only had very mild symptoms,” Ms Hammond said.
With no history of colon cancer in the family, she said the diagnosis was truly unexpected.
'I thought it wouldn't work out. “I really never thought it would be as devastating as cancer,” she said.
Petrina Hammond said it was 'especially important' to share her story and message about donating blood at Christmas to save the lives of others in a similar situation
Now that the devastating news was a reality, the couple faced a difficult decision about what to do next.
“I started thinking about the idea that we can't have this baby,” she said.
What made this decision even more difficult was the miracle of Artie's pregnancy.
Conceiving their first child “wasn't easy” for Mrs Hammond and her husband Craig. After many years of trying, they used in vitro fertilization (IVF) to get Mrs Hammond pregnant with their daughter Abigail, who is now three.
When they learned they would have a second child naturally, the Hammonds were thrilled.
“We expected that we would never get pregnant naturally, so it was a really nice surprise that I got pregnant with Artie,” she said.
Pertina thought the pregnancy made her feel tired and fatigued. She didn't expect to be told she had stage four colon cancer and that she probably wouldn't be able to carry her baby to term.
Pertina bought herself a cake to celebrate her recovery and told NewsWire her family finds comfort in having fun and joking. Image: supplied.
While recovering in hospital, the Sydney mother recalls that the transfusions made her feel “immediately better” and that without the donations she would not have recovered as quickly as she did.
“I remember feeling terrible and seeing this bag arrive, knowing it was a literal gift of life to me,” she said.
With Christmas being a 'critical donation period' for Lifeblood services, an additional 830 donations per day are needed across the country between December 22 and January 2 to meet patient demand.
To help meet this need, Red Cross Lifeblood has a pop-up donation center at Westfield Sydney, where shoppers can get their festive gifts and donate at the same time until December 26, Boxing Day.
Westfield Sydney's most magical gift shop aims to reach 2,200 Westfield donors this Christmas, with every donation having the potential to save up to three lives. Image: supplied.
With a goal of reaching 2,200 donors, the custom store called The most magical gift shop can accept up to 100 donations per day.
Australian Red Cross spokeswoman Jemma Falkenmire said many of the donations could be used to save a patient's life in just 24 hours.
Donors are notified via text message when their 'gift' is on its way to a hospital.
“Cancer patients, trauma victims and newborn babies are just some of those who will need blood over the next two weeks, and every 18 seconds a blood donation is needed to save a life,” Ms Falkenmire said.
Every donation from the pop-up shop can potentially save up to three lives.
“We have seen demand increase by more than 4 percent in our major cities, and demand for blood is now at its highest level in a decade,” she said.
Firstborn Abigail Hammond, who is now three, loves talking about her brother “Artie.” Every time she sees a butterfly, she tells her mother, “Artie is coming to say hi to us.” Image: supplied.
This week, Lifeblood also launched its annual Christmas Blood Blitz nationwide to prevent a blood shortage during the holiday season.
“It is vital that the community supports this service to help meet this increased demand for blood,” Ms Falkenmire said.
For the Hammond family, Artie is still a big part of their daily lives.
“We make sure we still remember him, especially at Christmas. He is part of our family, we talk about him as if he would have been here,” Mrs Hammond said.
Hanging a personalized ornament for Artie on the Christmas tree has become a family tradition.
“Those who donate blood to cancer survivors, like me, give the gift of life so patients can spend the holidays with their families,” Ms Hammond said.