Three weeks ago, Liam was exactly what every two-year-old should be — cheeky, happy, and full of life. He was the little boy with the constant grin, the one who made everyone laugh just by being himself. A ‘go-lucky’ toddler who didn’t know fear, hospitals, or words like prognosis and chemotherapy. His world was simple. And so was his family’s.
Then, on Friday, February 23, everything changed.
In a single moment, Liam’s future — and the lives of everyone who loves him — was split into a before and an after.
Liam was diagnosed with pineoblastoma, an exceptionally rare and aggressive brain tumour. So rare, in fact, that it accounts for less than 0.1% of all intracranial tumours. It is a diagnosis most doctors may never encounter, and one no family is ever prepared to hear — especially when spoken about a two-year-old.
The words landed like a shockwave.
Pineoblastoma is malignant, fast-growing, and unforgiving. For Liam’s family, disbelief quickly gave way to devastation when doctors explained the seriousness of his condition. Because of the tumour’s aggressive nature and Liam’s young age, his prognosis was described as poor — a sentence that no parent, no aunt, no family member should ever have to absorb.
Yet Liam is still Liam.
Still smiling. Still brave. Still fighting.
Liam is currently being treated at Westmead Children’s Hospital, where his days now revolve around machines, medications, and medical teams instead of toys and playtime. To relieve the dangerous pressure building in his brain, surgeons placed a shunt that runs from his head to his abdomen, allowing excess fluid caused by the tumours to drain safely.
It was a necessary procedure — but one that underscored just how serious his condition is.
Alongside this, Liam has begun intensive chemotherapy, an aggressive treatment aimed at slowing and reducing the cancer that is attacking not only his brain, but his spine as well. The therapy is brutal, especially for a child so small. His body is being asked to endure things it should never have to face.
And yet, he keeps going.
For his family, hope has become both fragile and fierce.
They refuse to give up on their little fighter. Every day is lived between fear and determination, between tears and courage. While doctors continue to do everything they can, Liam’s family has also begun searching beyond standard treatment — looking into clinical trials and alternative options that may offer him another chance.
The heartbreaking reality is that many of these trials are overseas.
And accessing them would require full private funding.
It is an impossible position — knowing there may be options out there, but that they come with costs no family can shoulder alone. Flights. Accommodation. Specialist care. Experimental treatments. Equipment. Medications. Every possibility carries both hope and financial weight.
That is why Liam’s aunties — Shayna, Chloe, and Jess — have stepped forward to speak for him.
Not because it is easy.
But because love demands it.
They have created the Save Cheeky Liam Fund, a way for anyone who is able to help give Liam more time, more options, and more chances. Every dollar donated will go directly toward Liam’s medical care — covering out-of-pocket treatment costs, outpatient medications, and any specialist equipment he may need after chemotherapy.
Nothing will be wasted.
And if there are funds not required for Liam’s care, they will be donated directly to Westmead Children’s Hospital and The Brainchild Foundation, ensuring that other children fighting similar battles can be helped too.
This is not about money.
It is about a little boy who should be worrying about toys, not tumours.
It is about a family who would do anything — absolutely anything — to save him.
It is about time, hope, and the belief that even the smallest life is worth every effort.
Liam’s family knows the road ahead is uncertain. They know there are no guarantees. But what they also know is this: giving up is not an option.
They will fight for Liam with everything they have.
And now, they are asking for help — whether that is a donation, a share, or simply holding Liam in your thoughts. Even a single dollar, a single act of kindness, becomes part of the hope that surrounds him.
From the bottom of their hearts, Liam’s family says thank you.
Thank you for seeing him.
Thank you for caring.
Thank you for standing with a cheeky, smiling two-year-old who is fighting the hardest battle of his life — and reminding the world that love is strongest when it refuses to give up.
