Comments (0) BRAVE little Bethany Topley is smiling again after a gruelling ten weeks of lifesaving cancer treatment in America.
The two-year-old and her family have just returned to their home in Stapleford with the news that the pioneering procedure to tackle a tumour in Bethany's face went well.
The youngster needs to undergo a final round of chemotherapy here in Nottingham before being given the all-clear but her father, Paul Topley, said her prognosis was good.
The brave tot took the treatment – 4,557 miles away from home – in her stride, despite having to undergo a general anaesthetic every day so that specialists could aim the radiotherapy at the right place.
She was eventually sent home early – needing just 23 of the 30 sessions originally planned.
Mr Topley, 33, said: "Towards the end there was no one at the hospital in Oklahoma who did not fall in love with her cheeky smile.
"We are immensely proud of her for being bubbly and happy the whole way through.
"We're glad that it's all over and happy to be back home with everyone. But we did make some friends out there, so it was sad to say goodbye to them."
The treatment Bethany was given cost £100,000, which was funded by the NHS, and is not available in this country.
It uses a hi-tech proton beam which allows the radiotherapy to be minutely controlled.
Doctors feared that if they had tried to treat her with the technology available in this country, it would have involved cutting away her eye, cheek and half of her nose – or stunting the growth in her face, leaving her permanently deformed.
Bethany was diagnosed with the cancer when she was just 11 months old after her parents found what they thought was a cyst under her left eye and doctors discovered a tumour the size of a 10 pence piece.
But her trip to the US was not all plain sailing. During the first week of treatment, she developed an infection in a line placed in her chest.
At first, doctors thought she had caught chickenpox from her four-year-old brother, Caine. But despite her treatment being put on hold, she recovered quickly and, after four days, continued to receive radiotherapy.
Mum Lesley Barsby, 24, said: "For the treatment to take place they had to give her a general anaesthetic every day from Monday to Friday for ten weeks. It was hard to see her like that but we were thinking the whole time that it was saving her life.
"The treatment made her look like she had really bad sunburn around her eye and she also lost eyelashes and had some swelling."
The NHS paid for the treatment and accommodation for Bethany and her parents but it could not cover living expenses.
Stapleford Community Group stepped in to help the family, from Ryecroft Street, and raised £774.34 for them to buy essentials during their stay. Chairman Richard MacRae said: "It is great that the family are home."
The two-year-old and her family have just returned to their home in Stapleford with the news that the pioneering procedure to tackle a tumour in Bethany's face went well.
The youngster needs to undergo a final round of chemotherapy here in Nottingham before being given the all-clear but her father, Paul Topley, said her prognosis was good.
The brave tot took the treatment – 4,557 miles away from home – in her stride, despite having to undergo a general anaesthetic every day so that specialists could aim the radiotherapy at the right place.
She was eventually sent home early – needing just 23 of the 30 sessions originally planned.
Mr Topley, 33, said: "Towards the end there was no one at the hospital in Oklahoma who did not fall in love with her cheeky smile.
"We are immensely proud of her for being bubbly and happy the whole way through.
"We're glad that it's all over and happy to be back home with everyone. But we did make some friends out there, so it was sad to say goodbye to them."
The treatment Bethany was given cost £100,000, which was funded by the NHS, and is not available in this country.
It uses a hi-tech proton beam which allows the radiotherapy to be minutely controlled.
Doctors feared that if they had tried to treat her with the technology available in this country, it would have involved cutting away her eye, cheek and half of her nose – or stunting the growth in her face, leaving her permanently deformed.
Bethany was diagnosed with the cancer when she was just 11 months old after her parents found what they thought was a cyst under her left eye and doctors discovered a tumour the size of a 10 pence piece.
But her trip to the US was not all plain sailing. During the first week of treatment, she developed an infection in a line placed in her chest.
At first, doctors thought she had caught chickenpox from her four-year-old brother, Caine. But despite her treatment being put on hold, she recovered quickly and, after four days, continued to receive radiotherapy.
Mum Lesley Barsby, 24, said: "For the treatment to take place they had to give her a general anaesthetic every day from Monday to Friday for ten weeks. It was hard to see her like that but we were thinking the whole time that it was saving her life.
"The treatment made her look like she had really bad sunburn around her eye and she also lost eyelashes and had some swelling."
The NHS paid for the treatment and accommodation for Bethany and her parents but it could not cover living expenses.
Stapleford Community Group stepped in to help the family, from Ryecroft Street, and raised £774.34 for them to buy essentials during their stay. Chairman Richard MacRae said: "It is great that the family are home."
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