Rene-Lily, little cancer fighter with a 'big spirit', starts school

Two weeks ago, Rene-Lily Gaskell could only dream about attending school.

The five-year-old from Welkom in the Free State started grade R on Tuesday.

Rene-Lily is battling cancer. Two weeks ago she lay in a hospital bed after surgery to remove pieces of a cancerous tumour.

Rene-Lily has attracted a group of supporters, who have been following her journey on social media via the Little Fighters Cancer Trust Facebook page.

Her mother, Christene Gaskell, told TimesLIVE on Tuesday that Rene-Lily, affectionately referred to as Lily, was diagnosed with cancer at the age of two-and-a-half years.

“Lily was always crying at night when she was younger and I never knew it was an indication of cancer. Before she was diagnosed, she was always complaining of stomach pains and she did not want to eat. She got thin. I took her to my GP and he put her on pills. For a month it got better but then she started again. Her stomach got bigger and Lily vomited a lot,” she explained.

Rene-Lily was referred to a specialist, who discovered her kidney was swollen.

“We were moved to the cancer ward and they sat me down and told me that Lily had a 10 x 11cm tumour on her adrenal gland pushing towards her stomach and against her liver and that was why she was in pain. They did more tests to determine what stage she was and it was very bad on Lily,” Gaskwell said.

Rene-Lily was diagnosed with stage 3 high-risk cancer.

“Lily has had chemotherapy for six months and then surgery was conducted in Johannesburg. The doctor removed 95% of the tumour but he could not remove the other 5% because the tumour had grown into the three main veins in the stomach,” Gaskell said.

Rene-Lily has continued with chemotherapy.

On January 12 a biopsy and an attempt to remove the remaining piece of the tumour was performed.

“Unfortunately, Lily relapsed again and the cancer grew into her intestine. The doctor had to cut off a piece of her intestine and reconstructed it. We were in hospital until January 19,” Gaskell said.

“We are now on the chemo injection and tablets for the next three months and we are waiting on the Peptide Receptor Radionuclide Therapy (PRRT). We hope that this will kill all the cancer cells so she can go into remission and be cured,” Gaskell said.

Gaskell cried when she left Rene-Lily at the school gate on Tuesday morning.

“Lily didn’t even cry. She is so excited. She wants to be a normal child again. She is going for ballet and dance lessons. She is healthy at the moment but she is a warrior and will beat this.

“As a mother, I feel like I want to scream and cry on some days but then I look at her and I know God gave her to me to protect and love and I will fight for her my whole life. Lily is an intelligent little girl with a heart of gold and a strong personality,” Gaskell said.

Lizelma Olivier of Little Fighters Cancer Trust said the organisation has been supporting the Gaskells for the past two years.

“Like all the children being supported by us, we try to help as best we can. Lily is a very special, brave little girl and we have huge admiration for her and her family,” she said.

The organisation's services include hospital ward support, promoting and advocating child cancer awareness and family support.

“We support the child with cancer and their family. Every family is unique and we respect this. Most of the families are from middle and lower income groups.  The families don’t have access to the internet or a medical aid.

“When a child is diagnosed with cancer it is the start of a three-year battle, sometimes even longer. A parent will have to give up a job to support the child. Children can be in hospital for months at a time. We send care packages to the family to help alleviate the financial burden.

“When a child can no longer eat, we would send Ensure or Pediasure. We would also help with nappies and wipes. If possible, we would send clothing and bedding,” Olivier said.

TimesLIVE