Brave Jaimie is an inspiration to us all
Cancer blow hasn’t got Troon girl down
A selfless schoolgirl has been nominated for a top award after inspiring others with her cancer battle.
Jaimie Gilchrist, 13, was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma in January and stunned doctors with her constant positivity.
Now she will lead 100 family and friends on a sponspored walk aiming to raise thousands for Glasgow’s Royal Hospital for Children – and has earned a GreatScot Unsung Hero nomination on top of it.
She said: “I’ve always been a positive person and when I was diagnosed I just made up my mind I would have to get on with it.
“Finding out I had cancer didn’t scare me. I just became something I had to go through.
“At least I am old enough to know what is going on. There are so many little kids and babies being treated in the hospital who have no idea what is happening to them.
“What I’m going through is nothing compared to them.
“I am not into self- pity. I think if your mind is in a good place, it helps your body get better quicker.
“When I got my central line in for my chemotherapy, the doctors couldn’t believe how upbeat and energetic I was after it. But for me, putting it in was one step closer to me getting better.”
Jaimie started to feel anxious and unwell last August, just after starting first year at Marr College.
Her weight plummeted and her mum feared she had anorexia – but after being referred to a paediatrician she was told she was suffering from Hodgkin lymphoma.
Now she will lead the walk – with her dog, Bud – and has even been asked by doctors at Glasgow Children’s Hospital to cut the ribbon on their fun day event on Saturday, September 3.
Mum Joan, 49, said: “Jaimie is one of a kind. She has always been mature for her age and is always trying to put others at ease with her smile and her positive attitude.
“She sees the cancer as just a blip in her life that she will get over. There hasn’t been a day when Jaimie hasn’t got up and put on a full face of make- up. And she always says she is feeling great even if she is feeling really sick.
“Jaimie doesn’t want other people to feel sad or mope and cry about what has happened to her. She wants them to share her outlook that she is going to beat it.”