17 February 2025
Despite the prospect of never walking again, Captain Shannon Garrett considers himself one of the lucky ones.
The father of six was recently diagnosed with a rare type of cancer.
Doctors found a tumour on his spine, but removing it would leave the Army engineer paralysed from the waist down.
Known as diffuse midline glioma, it causes rapid and unpredictable tumour growth common in the brain and among children.
There are fewer than a handful of adults in Australia with the same diagnosis as Captain Garrett. Fewer than 10 per cent survive more than two years.
“I’m lucky in that I don’t have the other nasty stuff that comes with brain cancer,” Captain Garrett said.
“I've had four surgeries already; they're reluctant to do any more.”
He says it is a case of when, not if, the tumour grows again.
Another course of radiotherapy is likely to leave him paralysed.
Despite difficulty walking after surgery, in July he is aiming to tackle a hike across Europe’s highest peak to raise money for cancer research.
Captain Garrett and his son will hike the Tour de Mont Blanc, more than 170km through the Italian, French and Swiss Alps.
'I'd love to run around with grandkids one day, but that's probably not going to happen.'
The pair hope to raise $100,000 for RUN DIPG, an organisation dedicated to funding research and increasing awareness of the fatal cancer.
When he started training last year, walking 100m was all he could manage.
Now he’s up to walking 60 minutes a day.
“I’ve got a very long way to go to get to the tour in July, but that's all part of the journey,” Captain Garrett said.
A journey which, for many with the same diagnosis, ends in tragedy.
“I'd love to run around with grandkids one day, but that's probably not going to happen,” Captain Garrett said.
“But I'll still be here to see the grandkids one day, so that's what I've got to focus on.”
“In comparison, I've got nothing to complain about, really.”
Read more about Captain Garrett’s story and donate to the cause at: https://rundipg-org.grassrootz.com/shannon-garrett-raising-awareness-funding-for-dipg-dmg-research
