The little girl looking forward to Christmas after traumatic cancer battle

Four-year-old Eloise Lonergan had a tumour so large her mum said it looked like ‘she’d swallowed a basketball’ and that she sometimes had to be held down for medical procedures because she found them so harrowing.

The ordeal was worsened by the pandemic restrictions last year when she was isolated from her father, James, and 14-year-old brother, Dylan, during the early stages of her treatment.

Thankfully, a scan earlier this year revealed that the cancer Eloise named ‘Lumpy’ had gone, although she still goes for hospital appointments and scans to check if it has returned.

And the brave girl has now had the boost of receiving a Star Award from Cancer Research UK for Children and Young People with a trophy, a £50 TK Maxx gift card, t-shirt and a certificate signed by the celebrity supporters, including. actor Dame Emma Thompson, celebrity chef Jean-Christophe Novelli and children’s TV favourite Mister Maker.

Mum Jenny said: “Eloise really loved getting her Star Award.

“It made her feel so special amid all the dreadful stuff.

“She’s quite the little shopper so she was delighted with the vouchers that came with it and was straight in the store buying a pink dress, shoes and some books.”

Eloise was just two when she was diagnosed with Wilm’s tumour, a type of kidney cancer, in May 2020, after weeks of persistent tummy aches.

When a visible swelling appeared in her stomach and she developed night sweats, her parents had been advised by NHS 111 to take her to A&E at Leicester Royal Infirmary.

Jenny described the process as ‘terrifying’ for the family as blood transfusions and scans highlighted a 15cm tumour in her daughter’s stomach, along with numerous smaller tumours.

As more and more tests were done to identify the exact type of cancer, the tumour in Eloise’s abdomen began to grow, her health declined rapidly and she was transferred to Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham.

“The consultant said the tumour was growing exponentially – like a snowball that was doubling in size as it rolled downhill,” said Jenny.

“It was so large Eloise’s clothes didn’t fit. She was wandering round the ward in a nappy, looking as if she’d swallowed a basketball.”

The family were initially told that the cancer was a stage four neuroblastoma and was very difficult to cure but after a course of chemotherapy started further more detailed scans revealed it was Wilm’s tumour, a type of kidney cancer with a much better prognosis.

“After six weeks of pre-operative chemotherapy it had shrunk so much it seemed like a miracle,” said Jenny.

At the end of July, Eloise had a 10-hour operation to remove her kidney along with the tumour and her adrenal gland.

She also had part of her liver, the tip of her gall bladder and some lymph nodes removed, along with the cancer.

After recovering from surgery Eloise had to undergo a further 28 weeks of chemotherapy, followed by radiotherapy.

The impact of her illness on Eloise was huge, changing her previously sweet and gentle personality.

Jenny said: “The whole experience was overwhelming for her because she was too young to understand it.

“I was the one in hospital with her, allowing people to do all these necessary - but from her point of view, awful - things, so she blamed me.

“There were many occasions when I had to hold her down while they carried out medical procedures because it was the only way we could get it done.

“She used to look at me and scream, ‘I hate you’. It was harrowing.

“She worked out that if she kicked and screamed and fitted like a mad thing, the nurses would back off.

“She would curl up and hide in the smallest corner she could find.

“Even when we got home she’d be hysterical if she realised we were going back to hospital.

“I used to have to smuggle the suitcase into the car so she didn’t know where we were going.

“She still freaks out if she sees someone in a mask because she associates them with hospital.”

Around 120 children are diagnosed with cancer in the East Midlands every year but research is helping to transform survival.

Cancer Research UK’s work helped change the way youngsters like Eloise are treated for Wilms’ tumour, making treatment kinder and reducing side effects.

The charity’s Star Awards have no judging panel because it believes every child diagnosed with cancer deserves special recognition.

The awards are open to all children under 18 who live in the UK and have been treated for the disease within the past five years.

Jane Redman, spokeswoman for Cancer Research UK for Children and Young People spokesperson for Leicestershire, said: “Eloise is a real star who has been through so much at such a young age.

“It has been an absolute privilege to be able to celebrate her courage with a Star Award.

“Cancer in children and young people is different from cancer in adults, from the types of cancer to the impact of treatment - and many youngsters may experience serious long-term side effects.

“That’s why we’re supporting dedicated research to ensure more children and young people survive cancer with a good quality of life.

“We’re urging people in Leicestershire to nominate inspirational children like Eloise now, so that many more affected by this devastating disease can receive the acknowledgement they so richly deserve.”

The Star Awards are run in partnership with TK Maxx, the biggest corporate supporter of Cancer Research UK’s work into children’s and young people’s cancers. Since 2004, the retailer has raised more than £40million for vital research to help improve survival and reduce the long-term side effects of treatments.

Go online at cruk.org/starawards to nominate a young person for a Star Award.