A YOUNGSTER who was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive cancer has been given a ray of hope after her family was told she now has no disease in her body.
Four-year-old Rebecca McKenna, from Erskine, was diagnosed with neuroblastoma in January 2018 and has battled through more than a year of treatment.
Since the turn of the year, Rebecca has undergone two sets of scans – and both have shown there is currently no cancer at all in her body.
READ MORE: Family appeal goes on for Rebecca McKenna's cancer treatment
Rebecca’s dad Chris told The Gazette how it was incredibly rare for kids with neuroblastoma to be given the all-clear in two consecutive scans, as the cancer is extremely aggressive and can reappear at any time.
And the 38-year-old said his family are amazed by how Rebecca has responded to treatment.
“We are absolutely delighted with her progress,” added Chris. “It’s so rare for both scans to show all-clear, so the doctors were very pleased.
“She has responded to everything amazingly well. She had a really tough time back in the summer when she was going through stem cell treatment. It was horrible but she has bounced back. She has been able to feed herself the whole time, when a lot of kids need a feeding tube, so that’s amazing.
READ MORE: New treatment offers fresh hope in brave Erskine tot's cancer battle
“To say we as a family are over the moon is an understatement. We just hope the positive news continues.”
Rebecca is still continuing with her treatment and is due to receive her end-of-treatment scans at the end of May.
If all goes well, the family then plan to fly out to New York for Rebecca to begin a vaccination programme which will hopefully prevent her relapsing in future.
They have been raising cash for the preventative treatment through the RaiseForRebecca campaign, with the JustGiving page having accumulated almost £100,000 worth of donations.
In other good news, Rebecca has managed to return to nursery, despite concerns that this might never happen.
READ MORE: New hope for Erskine tot Rebecca after 4-hour tumour op
And it is hoped that, later this year, she will start school in Erskine, defying all the odds.
Chris added: “She was only supposed to be at nursery for an hour last Monday but she stayed on until after lunch and went back the next day.
“We are so proud of her and how she just takes everything in her stride. She certainly is one in a million.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here