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Reference > Erinsborough News > There’ll Be Good Days And Bad Days

Just weeks after her Hodgkin’s disease was diagnosed, brave Delta Goodrem appears in public

The teenage singer and Neighbours star last week made her first appearance, at an informal awards ceremony in Sydney, since being diagnosed with Hodgkin’s disease, a highly treatable form of cancer.

Receiving seven ARIA No.1 Chart Awards, presented to artists who topped the Australian charts in the year to July, Delta Goodrem appeared happy and relaxed. But she did admit that with chemotherapy and radiation treatment now under way, she expected things might not always be that way.

“I’ve started treatment and it will continue for the next four or five months,” the stunning teenager says. “I know there will be good days and bad days. On the good days I do what I love to do, and I’m really happy I could get here today.”

The young star also promised her fans and loyal supporters she would beat the disease, which has also affected other young performers, including Barry Watson, the star of US television series 7th Heaven and movies such as Sorority Boys and Teaching Mrs Tingle.

Like Barry – who has been in remission since finishing chemotherapy late last year and is now working on new film roles - Delta intends to return to her career as soon as possible.

“I can’t wait to be back here next year,” the brave 18-year-old declared at the harbourside event, where she was lavished with emotional congratulations from fellow musicians, including rock bands Powderfinger and Motor Ace.

Sporting a slightly shorter haircut and dressed in casual jeans and a fashionable hip-length beaded top, up-beat Delta’s emotions eventually got the better of her as she thanked the Australian public for their support since her shock diagnosis. “I’m really touched,” she said. “Their prayers have really helped me.”

Delta also received a supportive phone call from Sir Elton John. The legend, who is reported to be a big fan of the piano songstress, offered her his best wishes. The talented youngster was presented with the biggest challenge of her life just weeks ago when she sought medical advice after discovering a suspicious lump on her neck.

A series of tests revealed the singer-songwriter, who had been battling fatigue after months juggling music and Neighbours commitments, was suffering from Hodgkin’s disease. This type of cancer, usually diagnosed in young people and the elderly, forms in the body’s lymphatic system but is considered highly treatable.

Statistics show up to 90 per cent of all newly diagnosed cases of this disease are, thankfully, curable. Since her diagnosis, Delta’s Neighbours character, aspiring pop star Nina Tucker, has been written out of the series and the popular performer has not returned to the show’s Melbourne set.

“She had to concentrate on her health, so there was no getting around it,” Neighbours script producer Luke Devenish said last week.

She will be seen on screen, in episodes filmed prior to her diagnosis, until October. The dignified singer also confirms her post-treatment future includes a return not just to the recording studio but also the small-screen role that made her a star in Australia and the UK.

“Definitely, I’m not losing it,” she said of her Neighbours role, which scored her a TV WEEK Logie Award earlier this year.

This article originally appeared in NW magazine, dated August 2003

Article submitted by Steve