<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Jade Hlucshniow was on the brink of selling her home to afford treatment for her daughter, whose debilitating skin condition had stolen much of her childhood.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Ruby, age seven, suffered from eczema so painful that it consumed her family's life.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Watching her suffer was unbearable. She would tear her skin apart, and there was nothing we could do to stop it," her mum, Jade, told </span><a href="http://nine.com.au" rel="" target="" title="nine.com.au"><span>nine.com.au</span></a><span>.</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/body-found-in-search-for-missing-northern-territory-girl/d2aa7d07-20a3-4e85-965b-dcae5f71dd4d" rel="" target="" title=""><strong><span>Suspected murderer of little girl beaten unconscious before arrest</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Nights were the worst. For the rest of my life, I will never forget her screams – crying out, begging us to help her – and the overwhelming feeling of helplessness as we stood there, unable to take her pain away."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Jade said that before Ruby had access to proper treatment, life was a living "nightmare."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Missing school, she also stopped eating properly and became too self-conscious to go out in public.</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/national/severe-eczema-pbs-federal-government-medication-dupixent-dupilumab/db7c039e-2141-4202-90ec-9731bb98b01d" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"She was so worried about people staring at her," Jade said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>When the family heard about Dupixent, a treatment Jade describes as a "miracle" injection, the hope came with a brutal price tag: about $1600 a month.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"We found ourselves going over everything – what we could cut from our expenses, how we could earn more money, what we could sell – just to try and make this treatment an option," explained.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I can honestly say we would have gone as far as selling our house."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Ruby gained compassionate access to the drug a year and a half ago, and according to her mum, has become "a different child."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I can't put into words the overwhelming relief we felt in that moment...for the first time in so long, we could finally breathe again."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/groceries-prices-inflation-coles-woolies-supermarket-prices/a0b3c54b-ac98-41cd-9132-879fe1663b42" rel="" target="" title="How much your supermarket spend has jumped in two years"><strong><span>How much your supermarket spend has jumped in two years</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Now, families who cannot afford the same treatment want the Federal Government to take immediate action by subsidising Dupixent through the PBS for children under 12.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The drug is already available on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme for Australians aged 12 and over, but younger children are excluded without special access.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>National charity Eczema Support Australia is spearheading the </span><a href="https://www.eczemasupport.org.au/sos-for-kids-with-eczema/" rel="" target="" title="SOS for Kids with Eczema"><span>SOS for Kids with Eczema</span></a><span> campaign to advocate for PBS funding of Dupixent for children aged six months to 11 years.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Managing director Melanie Funk is urging for improved access to treatments, saying the current lack of funding leaves thousands of families suffering unnecessarily.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Families of young Australian children with severe eczema are at a breaking point, unable to afford a medicine that can change lives," she said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>If listed on the PBS, the cost would be slashed from $1600 to about $25 a month.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Eczema affects approximately three million Australians, including one-in-three children aged six years or younger.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Dr Li-Chuen Wong, from the Australasian College of Dermatologists, said severe cases could be debilitating for young children, causing relentless itching, skin infections and sleep disruption.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"In the worst cases, children are in constant discomfort and unable to function normally, and the impact on families is profound," she said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>That was the harrowing reality for the Hlucshniow family – a stark contrast to Ruby's life today, where she can finally enjoy the same experiences as other seven-year-olds.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"She joins in sports, participates in all school activities, and no longer has to sit on the sidelines. She goes to birthday parties – something she used to avoid – and has become such a social butterfly. It's been incredible to watch."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"These might seem like small things, but for Ruby, they mean everything," Jade said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>A spokesperson for the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing told </span><a href="http://nine.com.au" rel="" target="" title=""><span>nine.com.au</span></a><span> that the pharmaceutical company responsible for dupilumab in Australia has not provided the required documentation for the PBS listing to progress. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee will consider an updated proposal at its July 2026 meeting.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><em><span>NEVER MISS A STORY:</span></em></strong><span> </span><em><span>Get your breaking news and exclusive stories first by following us across all platforms.</span></em></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><ul><li><strong><em><span>Download the 9NEWS App here via</span></em></strong><span> </span><a href="https://apps.apple.com/au/app/9news/id1010533727" target="_blank"><strong><em><span>Apple</span></em></strong></a><span> </span><strong><em><span>and</span></em></strong><span> </span><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=nineNewsAlerts.nine.com&amp;hl=en_AU&amp;pli=1" target="_blank"><strong><em><span>Google Play</span></em></strong></a></li><li><strong><em><span>Make 9News your preferred source on Google by</span></em></strong><span> </span><a href="https://9.nine.com.au/8x987w" target="_blank"><strong><em><span>ticking this box here</span></em></strong></a></li><li><strong><em><span>Sign up to</span></em></strong><span> </span><a href="https://login.nine.com.au/edm?client_id=nineatnine" target="_blank"><strong><em><span>our breaking newsletter here</span></em></strong></a></li></ul></div></div>