Exclusive:
Emma Eyre admits her daughter Eden is finally excited for Christmas this year thanks to the Great Ormond Street Hospital team who helped her after she was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer…
Sitting in the GP surgery with my two-and-a-half-year-old daughter Eden on my lap, tears streamed down my face as I begged for help. Having spent the past six weeks in and out of appointments, I knew that something wasn’t right. We were all missing something, but I didn’t know what. All of a sudden she’d had lots of infections and illnesses, and the gaps where she wasn’t poorly were getting smaller. She was lethargic and hadn’t been able to consume anything other than a smoothie in weeks. Her stomach was swollen too, but I’d put that down to constipation. But it wasn’t that. It was the tumour that was growing in her stomach.
After weeks of looking for an answer, one doctor took a look at Eden and sent us straight to paediatrics. Soon we were taken to West Middlesex University Hospital where a test revealed a mass in her abdomen and we were told it might be cancer. I got up and walked out the room. I just couldn’t understand it. It was really frightening and it happened so fast. They told us that they were waiting for a bed to open up for us at Great Ormond Street, where further tests revealed that she had neuroblastoma. The world crashed around us and everything went very black. She was only little.
The treatment plan was 18 months from start to finish and consisted of chemotherapy, radiotherapy and immunotherapy. Watching her go through it was soul-destroying. It tore me apart. I had to sign paperwork before chemotherapy that stated that the risk of the treatment was her life – I signed knowing that her little body might not be strong enough to withstand it.
Like anyone who’s had chemo, Eden’s body was sensitive and sore. There’d be times where she couldn’t have anyone near here. She’d be in so much pain, but I couldn’t hold her so I just sat and watched. That was one of the hardest things.
At one point we’d spent six weeks in hospital and she came out just in time for Christmas. We were so excited to have her home, but she was so weak and irritable that she hated it. It was heartbreaking.
The staff at GOSH are magical, they’re second to none. They used to sit and play with Eden at 2am when she couldn’t sleep. They left notes on the whiteboard that said ‘welcome back Eden’ and she’d be excited, forgetting why were there. They created happy memories in the hospital. I never thought that was feasible.
In February 2019, Eden rang the bell and the nurses gathered round and I baked a cake that featured the characters from the ward. Throughout treatment I’d look at the bell constantly and it was a little bit of hope as I walked around.
Eden is growing with confidence every day. Going through cancer has made her quieter, but she loves drama and she’s the happiest little thing. We’ve moved to follow-up appointments, which means we only go to GOSH once a year so they can monitor her development.
She’s so excited for Christmas this year – her list is absolutely huge, she’s always asking for more! For me, every milestone, whether that’s Christmas, a new school term or birthday, reminds me of how lucky I am. I’ll never stop feeling grateful because I could be living in a world of grief. Me and her dad feel unbelievably fortunate that she’s still here and we’re a family of five.”
