Worldwide, more than 460,000 new cases of leukaemia are diagnosed each year. In the United States, that number is over 28,000. In Australia, in 2022 alone, over 5,200 people were diagnosed with leukaemia — roughly 60% male and 40% female. More than 2,100 of those Australians lost their lives.
Yet there is hope. In Australia, the five-year survival rate for leukaemia is about 64%. For children in countries like Australia and the U.S., survival can be as high as 85%. These numbers remind us that progress is being made — but the fight is far from over.
Because behind these statistics are real people facing unimaginable challenges. Patients endure aggressive treatments — chemotherapy, radiation, stem cell transplants — that drain their energy and leave them vulnerable to infections. Many spend weeks or months isolated in hospital rooms, far from friends and family.
And it’s not just physical. The emotional toll is immense:
Families, too, carry the burden — parents juggling work and hospital visits, children missing school, loved ones living with constant uncertainty.
And of course, there is the financial strain. In the U.S., treatment costs over three years often run between $200,000 and $800,000. In fact, a recent study showed the estimated lifetime cost per patient to be over $140,000 across eight years of treatment. In Australia, the numbers are far lower — still, the average cost is approximately $34,000 in the first year after diagnosis, and around $9,000 annually in the years that follow if things go well. But if the disease is terminal, the final year of life can see costs balloon to $50,000 per person. When you combine that with lost income and the long road of survivorship with its ongoing health complications, you can see the true weight of this disease.
Leukaemia is not just a disease of the blood. It’s a test of resilience — for patients, for families, and for entire communities.
One person who has made it his mission to help people struggling with these issues, particularly men, joins us here today. David McGregor is the Founder and CEO of My Mindset Magic — and he joins us now.