A mum from West Lothian wants to use Childhood Cancer Awareness Month to recognise her daughter’s year long battle with the disease.
Ellie Beattie, aged 13, was first diagnosed with cancer in July of 2018 and already has had to endure 32 bouts of radiotherapy and life threatening brain operations in just over a year.
Speaking to the Courier her Mum, Elaine, said: “Ellie started having problems when she was seven. The gait of her leg was really wide, her thigh was causing her severe pain and she was always complaining of feeling sick but the doctor put it down to stomach migraines.
“Then the headaches started and after a few trips to the A&E they started to take Ellie’s condition seriously.
“The neurologist did so many tests and even a biopsy of her brain but couldn’t find an answer.
“When I showed them my sister’s death certificate, who died of pineoblastoma in 1990 aged 19, everything seemed to move in a different direction and we soon had an answer – Ellie has metastatic pineoblastoma and leptomeningeal disease.”
Elaine says she was relieved to have a diagnosis and that treatment could start – but that was twinned with the crushing revelation that the tumour was inoperable.
Ellie was diagnosed on July 17 2018, and in just over a year she has had to endure numerous serious operations, chemotherapy and radiotherapy – but she is still battling on.
Elaine continued: “She lost the strength to walk with the chemotherapy but is getting her strength back now.
“At the moment we are sitting with a stable diagnosis but our life is lived from scan to scan – we hope we are able to keep Ellie as healthy and as happy as possible for as long as possible.
“The damage this has done to my child emotionally and physically is shocking.
“She has poor mobility, requires a wheelchair and is emotionally scarred too with bad dreams and a poor sleeping pattern.
“I’ve made it my mission to fill the good days with nice things to do and giving her lovely presents but I have only managed to do this because of the kindness and compassion of others.”
Elaine made a Facebook page for Ellie when she was first diagnosed and has charted her long battle with the disease on the page.
She also posts any fun things they get up to, like visiting the circus or cinema, and members of the page are asked to interact and suggest things for them to do.
The page is called ‘Ellie’s brave cancer journal’ and anyone who would like to help out or even just encourage Ellie is asked to join the group.
Each September Childhood Cancer Awareness Month helps to highlight the impact of cancer on young people and their families.
To find out more visit: https://www.childrenwithcancer.org.uk/about-us/what-we-do/childhood-cancer-awareness/
