Chemo cab is vital for baby Oliva who is fighting cancer
OLIVA Lynch is like any other toddler. She is music mad, loves dancing and won’t go anywhere without her favourite teddy, iggle piggle.
But at just 9 months old in July 2017, she was diagnosed with Wilms’ tumor, a rare kidney cancer that primarily affects children.
“I noticed that one side of her stomach was very swollen when changing her one day. We put her to bed but she was not settling. I thought it was a hernia. So we took her to A&E,” recalls mum Amanda.
Immediately the family knew something was not right as Dad Declan Leydon says: “Within a few minutes we were surrounded by a team of doctors. They knew straight away that there was a huge mass on her kidney.”
Oliva was transferred to Crumlin for a biopsy which confirmed the cancer. There followed months of ongoing treatment includingg operations, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Despite this trauma at such a young age the 20-month-old from Ballytivnan has ‘always had a smile on her face.’
“Even on her very bad days when she is really sick after chemo, she still has a smile, every doctor has said it about Oliva. We are so proud of her,” says Amanda.
Her gentle temperament and happy disposition has helped the family cope with the harsh reality that is cancer.
“It is always in the back of your mind, the fear of losing her, the hope that the cancer goes and doesn’t come back. I thought we were going to lose her because cancer is such a big word,” explains Amanda.
One organisation that has plenty of experience working with children with cancer is BUMBLEance Children’s National Ambulance Service. Oliva’s parents say the support it provided was vital . “BUMBLEance helped us out so many times providing a door tto door service for Oliva from Sligo to her many hospital visits to Dublin. Before that we were getting the train and the bus. It was very stressful,” says Declan.
“They collect us from our house in the chemo cab or the bumbulance. Our driver Aidan Thompson is so nice. There’s DVD’s, sensor lights, everything to keep Oliva amused. We were even going to avail of the air ambulance service they provide from Strandhill but it was cancelled due to a storm. We can’t say enough about how great the service has been for us,” adds Oliva.
By November 2017 things appeared to be looking up for Oliva who was responding well to treatment but then medics discovered another tumour.
“The lowest point for me was learning about the second tumour which was more agressive,” says Amanda, “You almost give up hope.”
But thankfully Oliva who is a ‘ little fighter’ is once again responding well to treatment. She has just finished her last course of chemo and a full scan is scheduled for mid-May. “We are hopeful she’ ll then be cancer free,” says Amanda.