Yahoo Lifestyle 
Drugged and shaved: woman forced to fake cancer by mum
They’re one of the few people in the world you trust unconditionally, but one woman was left utterly betrayed after her mum lied and told her she had cancer at the age of seven.
Hannah Millbrandt, now 21, has opened up about her shocking ordeal which saw her mum Teresa drug her, shave her head and scam thousands of dollars from their worried community after lying about her daughter’s illness.
Hannah was taken to the doctor at the age of seven after suffering a mild fever and cough, but remembers her mum explaining to her how doctors had found a tumour at the base of her spine.
Describing how her dad Bob broke down in tears at the news, Hannah was left terrified by her diagnosis and subject to endless hospital appointments.
“Mum was a home-care nurse, so administered my medication herself,” Hannah told the Mirror.
“But it just seemed to make me feel worse – I started getting awful headaches, and felt exhausted all the time.”
Not only tended to by her mum, but also a mysterious nurse named ‘Beth’ who came regularly but she was never awake to see, Hannah recalls being taken for 'ice cream' before her hospital appointments, with the treat leaving her sleepy.
With her mum forcing her wear a surgical mask to ward off germs, Hannah woke up one day to find her long blonde hair had been shaved off by Beth during her sleep.
Hannah’s physical appearance saw a flood of donations come in from the local community, totaling an incredible $38,800.
Puzzled after her mum told her “You’re my million-dollar baby” in private, Hannah admits people began to recognise her wherever she went.
“I hated it, but Mum lapped up the attention. She never left the house without her fashionable clothes, manicured nails and styled hair,” Hannah told the Mirror.
The true story was uncovered after one of Hannah’s teachers noticed her even regrowth of hair, which was uncharacteristic of chemo patients, and reported Teresa to family services.
Teresa was arrested, and despite pleading guilty by reason of insanity amid claims she suffered from Munchausen by Proxy which sees a caregiver invent an illness for someone dependent on them, was sentenced to nearly seven years in prison.
Hannah’s dad Bob claimed he had no idea, and was jailed after pleading guilty to child endangerment and theft – with Hannah returning to live with him after his release when she was 15.
For Hannah, whose Facebook profile lists her as engaged and living in Springfield, Ohio, coming face to face with her mum after she surprised her at work last year only proved there was no chance of forgiveness.
“My heart sank when I released it was Mum, looking old and haggard – a far-cry from her days of coiffed hair,” Hannah told the Mirror.
“I screamed at her to get out. I want nothing to do with her; she stole my childhood from me and I’m afraid to be near her.”
Hannah has now vowed to help other victims of abuse, and help them realise that there’s hope no matter how shocking and tragic their story.
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