A one-year-old baby girl from Glasgow has been diagnosed with stage four of a rare cancer, as her heartbroken mum said she "knew something was wrong."
Diagnosis and Symptoms
Marie Smith, from the Nitshill area, said her daughter Arissa has been a "wee fighter" since her devastating germ cell cancer diagnosis in April, which has seen her undergo surgery and several rounds of chemotherapy. Her baby girl was diagnosed after an MRI revealed a large yolk sac tumour near her pelvis, with the cancer also found in Arissa's lungs, chest and bones.
While Arissa used to be a "smiley and giggly wee thing," 38-year-old Marie began to notice worrying changes in her behaviour before the diagnosis. Two viral infections and pneumonia had put the little one in intensive care in January, but Marie says no other health problems were found at that time.
But when Arissa began to refuse to sit on her bum, and stopped being her usual happy self, the mum immediately knew something was wrong. Marie also said she could tell Arissa was in pain when trying to use the toilet, and that she had been vomiting when trying to poo.
Mother's Instinct Ignored
The mum-of-three told Glasgow Live: "She wouldn't sit on her bum. She didn't even like her weaning feeds, and she wouldn't take much from her bottle. She wouldn't sleep on her bum at all, she would lie on her front like a wee frog."
"I was like, 'this isn't normal'. I was all over the place because I didn't know what was wrong."
Marie said GPs initially told her Arissa probably had constipation, but that relief medication didn't help. She added: "I knew myself that there was something going on with her. Because mothers know."
Marie then took baby Arissa to A&E, where it was discovered she had bruising around her bum. The mum explained: "That's when things started to be taken seriously. They had to knock her out for the MRI scan, and that's when the news came back."
Stage Four Cancer
The scan revealed a large cancerous growth next to Arissa's pelvic area. Marie said: "It was growing upwards towards her spine, and it was big. That's when they said it was stage four. [The cancer] was in her lungs, chest and bones."
The mum also sadly lost her dad and gran last year, and said she "hasn't had time to grieve" due to Arissa's illness and subsequent treatment. The baby girl has undergone several surgeries and four rounds of chemotherapy, including an operation to remove the tumour on July 3 at Glasgow's Children's Hospital.
Marie says she doesn't know what Arissa's next steps could look like, but that "there's a chance" she could survive the cancer. She said: "Once she heals from [the surgery], they need to keep scanning her to make sure the tumours in her lungs don't grow. But I don't know what's going to happen."
"She's definitely a wee fighter. She can sit up now and you can see her laughing."
Hospital Care and Fundraiser
The mum added that the care Arissa has received from Glasgow's Children's Hospital has been "brilliant," and that it "can't be faulted." She said: "The support and the care that they've given since she's been diagnosed has been brilliant. Even the doctor made sure she got her MRI that day when they knew there was a growth."
To "give something back," Marie's nephew Andrew, 27, is running 100 miles from Fort William to the hospital grounds to raise a goal of £5,000 for the Glasgow Children's Hospital Charity. The challenge, named "100 Miles for Arissa," will see Andrew run the distance over five days from August 1 to August 5. His fundraiser has currently raised nearly £3,000.
