A little boy had to get one of his eyes removed because of a rare form of cancer.
Noah Blanks, the brave young boy who had to undergo this painful thing, was four years old when his father Ollie noticed something abnormal about his eye.
Ollie did a quick Google search and what came up was enough to send chills down his spine.
Ollie and his wife Laila Gaudry took pictures of their son’s eye using their phone’s flash and the white reflection they noticed confirmed that their son had retinoblastoma, a rare form of cancer.
When the couple took their son to the doctors, they confirmed that Noah did have retinoblastoma.
Chemotherapy was suggested as the best course of action. Noah bravely received chemo for a few months but cancer didn’t go away and the doctors were left with only one choice – enucleation.
Laila explained Noah’s treatment, saying: “Noah would need six cycles of chemotherapy.
“The path was always going to be hard but life threw some extra challenges at him from the beginning – he had an allergic reaction to the medication and developed a fever.
“But as time went on there were fewer complications and the tumor was responding well.”
As Christmas came closer, things looked to be changing for good. The reports showed Noah’s tumor was shrinking in size and everything was gonna be alright.
But the tables turned just ahead of Christmas when Ollie and Laila were called by the doctors.
The medics explained that in the most recent reports of Noah’s cancer, the tumor had shown extensive growth and he needed immediate enucleation.
“After everything Noah had been through, I couldn’t believe it. What was meant to be a good bit of news before Christmas had turned into a nightmare,” Laila added.
“I had an anger and heartache raging inside me that our little boy had fought so hard. But I also wanted the cancer gone and I knew that once his eye had been removed it couldn’t hurt him anymore.”
Noah’s parents decided to wait for the operation until after Christmas so that Noah could enjoy the festive season. The young boy, however, took it like a champ and went comfortably for the procedure the following day.
Laila said: “Noah had his temporary prosthetic fitted four weeks later and I was truly amazed at how good it looked and how well he coped. At his first check-up post-surgery he was given the all clear.
“Noah is now six years old and doing really well. His big brother Jake is so supportive and they’re inseparable – best friends and partners in crime.
“I’m relieved Noah had the surgery rather than going through more treatment and it was the right decision for our family.
“Last year we moved to Eastbourne and it felt like a fresh start. Everything is moving forward and Ollie and I are getting married next year.
“Christmas is approaching and we’re really excited… We’re also going to Lapland thanks to a wish granted by the charity Rays of Sunshine.
“We haven’t told Noah yet as we want to surprise him. Life is so much better and I hope our story can help other families to know that there really is light at the end of the tunnel.”
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