Canteen rangatahi member Grace is the author of the comic Silent Battles: Navigating the Cancer Maze.
The story follows a 16-year-old girl called Irene, whose mum has been diagnosed with cancer. It looks at these feelings of being overwhelmed and feeling isolated, while trying to balance school and friends, on top of something that can be so daunting.
Read the comic below:
Grace wanted to create this comic to put something out there that people can read and resonate with. She said:
"It's such a common experience, but it can feel so isolating, and I think it gets overlooked so often. Being able to put something out there like this was really important to me personally. Being able to create the comic and share some of my own experience, with my mum being re-diagnosed with cancer last year, and then my dad being diagnosed the year prior. It's a great way to express something so raw and vulnerable in such a creative way.
When I reached out to Canteen for support, it was so helpful. The feeling of validation was so important, especially with something like this."
