The mother of Perth’s brave cancer fighter, Lily Douglas, has shared a brutally honest image of her daughter to mark International Childhood Cancer Day.
Eleven-year-old dancer Lily, a pupil at St John’s Academy, has continued to practice, compete and perform right through her cancer treatment.
Just last Sunday, Lily was on her toes at a competition and brought home two trophies for first place, one for coming second and a special inspirational dancer award with her name already engraved on the giant cup. It brought her tally to 112 trophies and 107 competition medals.
The talented dancer has two world titles and recently met Scottish Ballet star ballerinas in Glasgow.
Lily had 88 trophies in her room before she was diagnosed and since having chemo for an advanced Ewing sarcoma, flawlessly agile Lily has gone on to win another 24 pieces of silverware.
“I am beyond proud,” said her mum Jane as she surveyed Lily’s winnings recently. But two days before Lily performed her latest winning dance routine, in a salute to International Childhood Cancer Day on February 15, Jane shared a side of her daughter not often revealed on camera.
She explained: “This is Lily getting her gripper needle stuck in her chest so the nurse can get blood from her. This happens to cancer kids all over the world, every day.
“I never really like to post anything negative on Facebook as I don’t want Lily or I to live a negative life as she fights this horrible disease.
“But the truth is horrific: Lily has less than a five per cent chance of life on paper. Doctors said if Lily had not started treatment in December, she would have passed six weeks later. It scares me to think that date was two weeks ago.
“Lily continues to fight with sheer guts and determination, she is so positive and continues to dance throughout.”
In the post, which was answered with over 1300 supportive comments, Jane outlined Lily’s chosen routine of hours of dance practice in Glasgow and Perth followed by rounds of chemo in Edinburgh.
She said: “People often say to me she doesn’t look like anything is wrong with her but sadly she is very ill.
“Her nerves are so badly damaged, she struggles to walk some days, her stomach tube used at night to feed her gets constant infections, not to mention the hair loss, the gum ache, the tiredness, her fertility, her sight, her hearing, then all the school she is missing because we simply cannot let her pick up a winter infection of chickenpox as this can kill her.
“This post is not about sympathy, just to understand what childhood cancer is: absolute hell on this earth.”
And she added: “Seeing hundreds of people cheering Lily on whilst she danced for them had me in tears. So emotional and just so lovely. We will never wipe that smile off her face.”
