A woman who beat cancer has vowed to plough all her energy into helping her teenage daughter fight the same disease.
Hannah Simpson was devastated when 14-year-old Phoebe was diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer earlier this year.
But the mum-of-two, who endured a mastectomy, surgery to remove her lymph nodes then six gruelling rounds of chemo, is determined to stay positive.
Hannah, who is also mum to Sasha, 11, said: “There have been some very dark days but Phoebe knows we’re in this together – and like she was there for me, I’m here for her now.
“When I said, ‘I know how rubbish you feel,’ she knew I wasn’t lying.
"So when I said, ‘You will survive, you will be stronger than this cancer,’ she also knew I was right.”
Hannah, 47, says that after being diagnosed with cancer in 2016, she did her best to hide her fears from her girls.
“But Phoebe was no fool,” she said. “She knew she might be about to lose me.”
The 47-year-old, who started running during her treatment and even completed the London Marathon in 2017, was thrilled to be told she was on the road to recovery last year.
But just as she started looking forward to a cancer-free future, Phoebe began complaining about a pain in her knee.
A physio dismissed it as a ligament issue but Hannah was unconvinced.
She said: “Phoebe’s pain got so bad she would wake up in the night crying and she found walking almost impossible.”
The teenager was referred to the West Middlesex Hospital in January – and was diagnosed with osteosarcoma.
Hannah said: “It didn’t seem real or fair that I’d dodged a bullet only for Phoebe to be hit.”
In March the youngster had major surgery to remove a 23cm tumour from her left leg, followed by an op to fit a titanium femur and knee and several rounds of chemo.
Hannah, from Twickenham, West London, admitted that having to watch her daughter battle cancer was worse than anything she could have ever imagined.
She told how Phoebe “lost her beautiful blonde hair almost straight away” – but had stayed strong throughout and was keen to make plans for the future.
Hannah said: “The positivity she’s shown has been nothing short of inspirational.
“We’re stronger together now than I would have ever thought possible.”
- Phoebe is supported by the Momentum Children’s Charity
