A toddler has endured gruelling chemotherapy treatment after her parents said her first symptoms could easily have been mistaken for a common cold. Tanwen had just celebrated her second birthday in April 2025 when her parents noticed she was unwell.
Mum Kay said snotty noses were nothing new for Tanwen, who spent time with other children at nursery. But when the tot began to appear very pale and struggled to walk, the family knew something was seriously wrong.
GP wait and A&E dash
When her parents tried to get her a GP appointment in April 2025, the local surgery could not see Tanwen for a fortnight. Over the following weekend, the youngster took a turn for the worse and was rushed to A&E at Shrewsbury Hospital.
Multiple tests followed, and doctors eventually found that Tanwen had Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia (ALL). BirminghamLive reports that she has since undergone five gruelling rounds of chemotherapy and suffered reactions to some of her treatment.
Maintenance phase
Tanwen has now made it to the maintenance phase of her treatment, which is designed to maintain remission and stop the cancer coming back, and will last around a year and a half. She still has a daily and weekly dose of oral chemotherapy, as well as a monthly dose of another into her central line, and a chemo drug into her spinal fluid every three months.
On top of that, she has a week of a steroid drug each month and preventative antibiotics every weekend. It is still a lot for a little girl, but gentler on her tiny body than the blocks of chemotherapy that preceded it.
At the end of the chemotherapy blocks, Tanwen came home only to become extremely ill with a lung infection, sepsis and severe neuropathy, which meant she was not even strong enough to breathe for herself. Her blood levels were dangerously low, and she had an enlarged liver and spleen.
Kids' Kits bring joy
In the midst of treatment, when her morale was at its lowest, she received a Kids' Kit from Cancer Support UK. The kit contains toys, cosy socks, a heatable sensory Warmies bunny and other thoughtful items.
Kay said: "It was wonderful to see Tanwen’s little face light up while she explored everything that was in the kit. She had just finished a round of high-dose chemo, so was quite poorly when it arrived. It’s heartwarming to think that even strangers care.
"I hope they know what a difference a thing like this makes, especially for children as young as Tanwen. They don’t need big grand gestures. They just need little sparks of joy – and that’s exactly what this little kit was for her."
Cancer Support UK is now preparing Christmas kits to send to children battling cancer. Mark Guymer, CEO of Cancer Support UK, said: "A cancer diagnosis affects the whole family, and treatment can be especially frightening and isolating for children.
"Our Kids' Kits provide comfort, distraction and a sense of normality during long hospital stays and difficult days at home. For children like Tanwen, they can bring moments of joy at a time when it is needed most. This Christmas, we're asking people to help us fill more kits so that no child facing cancer feels alone."
