Prominent crossbench MP Fiona Patten reveals cancer diagnosis - The Age

Victorian upper house MP Fiona Patten has been diagnosed with cancer and will undergo surgery in the next few weeks to remove one of her kidneys.

She revealed her cancer diagnosis on Tuesday evening and said the timing of her surgery meant she would have to spend some time campaigning for November’s state election from her hospital bed.

Fiona Patten revealed she has been diagnosed with cancer. Credit:

“My prognosis is good; the belief is that the disease has not spread and that I should make a quick and full recovery,” Patten said in a statement.

“Many people stay silent upon a cancer diagnosis and are fearful of telling people because they will be judged or pitied. I want people to be able to talk about their health, be that physical or mental. I hope that by being public and transparent it might help others do the same.”

Patten has represented the seat of Northern Metropolitan Region for the Reason Party, formerly the Australian Sex Party, since 2014 and has been pivotal in achieving social reform, including voluntary assisted dying laws, safe access zones around abortion clinics and, most recently, decriminalising sex work.

The 58-year-old waited for more than two weeks after the 2018 polling day before it was confirmed she had been re-elected to the Legislative Council.

Days after the election, Premier Daniel Andrews told the ABC he would offer Patten a job if she was not re-elected, saying her absence would be a “loss to the parliament”.

The government has predominantly relied on the support of Patten, the Greens’ Samantha Ratnam and the Animal Justice Party’s Andy Meddick to pass laws in the finely balanced upper house.

Patten has been vocal about the threats she has received during her tenure as a parliamentarian, particularly throughout the past two years when she negotiated with the Andrews government on pandemic laws.

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2022-09-20 07:58:55Z
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