GoFundMe Launched to Support PHANTOM Veteran Ben Lewis Following Cancer Diagnosis

BroadwayWorld has just learned that a GoFundMe has been launched to support Australian actor Ben Lewis, who last year was diagnosed with incurable bowel cancer. Funds raised will go towards medical expenses related to Ben’s ongoing treatment and palliative care and creating moments of peace, comfort, and joy for Ben and his wife, Melle, in the time he has left. The description reads:

Despite his strength and determination, the cancer has proved to be quite aggressive and resistant to the chemotherapy drugs. Liver surgery followed and more chemotherapy but sadly the cancer has continued to spread. In April this year, scans revealed tumours in the liver, lungs and pelvis, too many to remove surgically or treat with radiation. Ben’s cancer is now considered incurable.

Ben has now stopped chemotherapy and moved to a targeted inhibitor treatment in the hope of slowing the growth of the tumours. Treatment has been debilitating and left him with terrible neuropathy in his hands and feet, another cruel side effect of an already devastating disease. The speed and relentlessness of this illness have taken a tremendous toll — physically, emotionally, and financially.

What makes Ben’s story even more heartbreaking is that he is also the primary carer for his beautiful wife, Melle. In 2021, at just 40 years old, Melle suffered a life-changing stroke caused by the Oxford AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine. This devastating event resulted in Melle spending nearly 9 months in hospital. Since that day, Ben has been by Melle’s side every step of the way as she continues her long rehabilitation journey. They have been an incredible team and Ben has made it his life’s mission to help Melle regain her independence and fulfil her goals of returning to work and living a rich and rewarding life.

Ben, now 45, has been Melle’s rock through all of this. He has dedicated himself completely to her rehabilitation, despite his own declining health. Neither Ben nor Melle have been able to work since her stroke in 2021, and this has naturally taken a toll on their finances.

Before illness took so much from them, Ben and Melle were successful performers in Australia and London. They lived vibrant, creative lives, and were deeply loved by the many communities they touched through their work. When tragedy struck Melle in 2021, these communities rallied in love and support. We never imagined we’d be reaching out again so soon.

Donate to the GoFundMe today.

Lewis is perhaps best knowm for playing The Phantom of the Opera in the original Australian production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Love Never Dies. In 2017 and 2018, he reprised the role in Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera in the original West End production. Other notable roles include Chad and Frank Farmer in the UK tours of Love Me Tender and The Bodyguard, as well as Larry in the 2018 West End revival of Company.