A presenter on The Project held back tears on air as she celebrated the bravery of a woman who is terminally ill with an aggressive cancer.
On Sunday night, Channel 10 aired Georgie Tunny’s powerful interview with Emily Lahey, a young woman from Melbourne who will share some of her final minutes of life to raise money for cancer research.
Ms Lahey, 31, was diagnosed with stage four NUT carcinoma four years ago after a “cricket ball”-sized tumour was found behind her sinuses.
Because little was known about the disease, he was given between six and nine months to live, but he continued to fight and beat the odds.
However, a recent scan revealed the cancer has spread to his brain and doctors cannot estimate how much time he has left.
Ms Lahey has launched Time to Live, an exhibition in Sydney that allows strangers to pay to spend three precious minutes with her.
Ms Lahey said she hoped the segment would help Australians understand what it’s like to live with a terminal illness in an emotional interview with Tunnny.
Her heartbreaking story left a mark on Tunny, who said she “has a lovely spirit” as she fought back tears.
The Project host Georgie Tunny (pictured) brought the city to tears after an interview with a “heroic” Australian woman who used her remaining life to raise money for cancer awareness.
During the interview, a visibly upset Tunny wiped away tears as she asked Ms Lahey if she “ever gets mad at the world” for the cruel situation she finds herself in.
“Fuck, I do… I get very angry,” the brave woman admitted.
“I think you just ride that wave and you can see things from a different perspective, without getting caught up in the daily grind.”
Tunny told him the story would “stay with me for the rest of my life,” holding up a tissue.
The interview brought back emotional memories for Tunny, who was comforted by fellow presenter Rachel Corbett as the panel
The other hosts on Sunday’s panel also praised Ms. Lahey’s candor with her remaining time.
“Stories like this just remind you how precious life is,” Michael Hing said.
“The fact that she’s dedicating those precious moments to cancer research and fundraising in what I imagine are really uncomfortable conversations is heroic.”
Corbett said the impact Ms. Lahey had on Ms. Tunny and those who experienced the exhibit was “her legacy.”
“We take a lot of things for granted… so if you have time and you’re lucky enough to have it, you might as well take advantage of it,” he said.
“It’s amazing to make people think about this, because we don’t think about it enough.”
Melbourne woman diagnosed with cancer, Emily Lahey (pictured), has allowed strangers to spend some of her last precious minutes with her as a living work of art Time to Live
Ms. Lahey recounted her life before her diagnosis: She was a “fit” young woman who ran 5 to 10 kilometers a day and believed that cancer was not an option.
While working in the defence forces at the time, he said he “wanted to start a family (and) there were a lot more travel goals”.
Her doctors said she became the “popular kid” because so many people wanted to study the rare type of cancer that she and only a handful of people around the world get each year.
Cancer is highly resistant to treatment, requiring an aggressive form of chemotherapy to try to prevent it.
The extra time it gave her allowed her to check items off her “bucket list,” including swimming with whale sharks and marrying her partner, Jason.
Expressions of interest for Time to Live are now available here.
