Mother and daughter both diagnosed with cancer.

Bethany Carlton was diagnosed cancer at age 17.

After discovering a lump in her breast, the teenager underwent an operation to have it removed – only to be told she suffered from a rare form of muscle cancer and would need extensive chemotherapy.

Throughout the ordeal, her mother, Mybritt Larsen, was by her side.

So when Ms Larsen was diagnosed with breast cancer three months into Bethany’s treatment, Bethany knew she would give her mother the same support in return.

Bethany describes the moment Ms Larsen revealed her diagnosis as surreal, telling The Brisbane Times, “She came into my room and she said, ‘I have something to tell you… I have cancer,’ and I was just thinking, are you serious.”

“I just started laughing and then she started laughing and I said ‘I am so sorry, I feel terrible but this is just so random, what are chances of this happening’.

‘I said, ‘Why are you trying to steal my thunder Mum? I’m the one with cancer, not you!'”

Despite the initial shock, mother and daughter are fighting their cancers side by side, even organising their chemotherapy sessions so that they are better able to look after one another.

For Bethany, the most difficult thing about her battle with cancer has been the loss of independence.

“The thing I struggle with is independence. When I have chemo, I need help in the shower and getting dressed because I just don’t have the energy to do it myself,” she told The Brisbane Times. 

“The very first time I had chemo I actually had to have a sleep before I brushed my teeth because I was just so tired.

“Because I am independent person, that is the thing I struggle with, feeling invalid to do it myself.”

Despite the challenges she faces, however, she’s managed to stay positive throughout the ordeal.

As she writes on her Go Fund Me page:

“Being diagnosed with cancer a few weeks before my 18th birthday was life-changing. However I did not expect it to change my life for the better. I’m not a battler or a survivor. I’m an 18 year old girl who managed to stay positive the whole time.”

Bethany, a lover of music and a budding choreographer, is now running campaign to raise the funds to perform and document a series of dances to the songs of Australian artist Sia.

You can donate to Bethany’s Go Fund Me campaign here.