Millie...

Despite all the hospital trips, nurse visits, general anaesthetics, scans, surgeries, chemotherapy and Retinoic acid, Millie coped brilliantly.  She managed to go to nursery, swim, see her friends and play with her little Sister, Grace, in-between treatment.  She sat and played happily on her hospital bed for up to 8 hours a day whilst she had chemotherapy administered and bounced back from major surgery in record time.  She was an absolute inspiration to us and I am extremely proud of her.  If Millie hadn't dealt with it so well, I would have ended up a total wreck.  She made me want to keep going and I enjoy every single day I have with her.

Millie's cancer was diagnosed when she was 10 months old (Sept 2012).  Neuroblastoma is an aggressive children's cancer and is a solid tumour of the nervous system.  Her tumour was alongside her spinal cord above her right lung.  She had surgery at Great Ormond Street Hospital to remove the tumour when she was 11 months.  The surgery seemed to be a success and analysis of the tumour suggested it was not likely to come back.  But it did come back, and in August 2013 she was re-diagnosed.  Millie had surgery to have a central line and port fitted, followed by 6 rounds of intensive chemotherapy.  The chemo wiped out her immune system so every month we were in our local hospital for up to a week whilst she fought an infection.  She had to have blood tests twice a week, antibiotics, was sick, constipated, lost her hair, went off most food and generally felt rotten.  After 4 rounds of chemo she had surgery again to remove the tumour (Feb 2014), followed by a further 2 rounds of chemo.  Unfortunately the cancer had spread into a lymph node nearby so that was also removed and there was a chance it had fired the cancer somewhere else in her body.  Millie finished a 6 month course of Cis-Retinoic Acid in November (2014) which hopefully turned off any remaining cancer cells.  She had a number of tests in the December, including 2 different types of scan under general anaesthetic.  The results were positive in that they could not see any cancer and on 31st January 2015, her port was removed.  This was one of the best days of my life as it meant I no longer had to pin Millie down against her will, whilst a nurse flushed out her line with her kicking and screaming and yelling at me - this was due to the pain of the needle going into her skin, the fluids going in and out of her body and being fed up at being pulled around - I couldn't blame her but it was very upsetting.  I remember when it was all done, driving home from GOSH, going past the London Eye (with the Frozen soundtrack blaring out in the car!) and me balling my eyes out, crying with relief.  

For the last 4 years Millie has had regular check ups and MRI scans at GOSH and thankfully there has been no sign of the neuroblastoma returning.  In January 2020, Millie will have her last check up and MRI scan at GOSH and if clear, the check ups and scans will stop.  Whilst there is a slim chance of the neuroblastoma returning (there have been cases where it has come back in teenage years), I pray this doesn’t happen to Millie.  If it does, then I pray once morethere is the research and advance in medicine to allow her to fight this cancer once again.

Millie (now age 8) is sociable, loves school (especially English), loves role playing and putting on a show!  She enjoys swimming, gymnastics, netball, art, reading and playing the piano!  She is lots of fun and I love spending time with her.

Me…

There are two personal challenges I’ve always wanted to do: 1. run the London marathon and 2. climb Mount Kilimanjaro.  As many of you know, in 2015, I ran the London marathon (for the charity Children with Cancer UK, for Millie and for myself) and now, 5 years on, I am climbing Mount Kilimanjaro (again for the charity CwC UK, for my children and for myself!).  As well as raising money for a fantastic cause and one very close to my heart, I want to show Millie and Grace how their Mummy can be strong, determined and work hard to achieve her challenges and dreams.  The icing on the cake (or in this case mountain!) is that I get to climb Kili with one of my best friends, whom I have known since secondary school, Kirsty Harris (nee Mowbray).  Kirsty is an amazing friend and someone I can totally be myself with.  I can’t wait to add this to to list of fun and crazy things we have done together in our lives!  We know this isn’t going to be easy and will test us on numerous levels and various stages of the trek,, but what an amazing experience and a fantastic memory to look back on and be proud of.

Children with Cancer UK

Children with Cancer UK is a charity very close to my heart.  The charity funds vital research into the treatment and hopefully (one day) cure of children's cancers.  They also provide much needed support to families who have a child with cancer.  I never appreciated how important these two areas were until we were affected (Millie's tumour would have been unlikely to return if they knew before the tumour returned what they knew after).  This research saves lives, lives of innocent children who don't deserve pain, suffering and the chance of a long happy healthy life.

My ask…

Please sponsor me, donate whatever you can (it really does all help) and write me a message to keep me going through training and the big climb itself…I'm going to need it!!  

Thank you in advance, it really means a lot to me and the charity I'm raising vital money for…  Love Vanessa xx

Mount Kilimanjaro and our climb

Mount Kilimanjaro or just Kilimanjaro, with its three volcanic cones, is a dormant volcano in Tanzania. It is the highest mountain in Africa, with its summit about 4,900 metres from its base, and 5,895 metres above sea level.

Towering at 5,895 meters (19,341 feet), Kilimanjaro is known for not only being the highest point in Africa, but also the highest “freestanding” mountain in the world. This means that the mountain is not part of any contiguous range.

When you ascend to Kilimanjaro’s highest point, you are committing not only a challenging and rewarding summit, but also to journey through 5 ecosystems: cultivated land, rainforest, heather, moorlands, alpine desert, arctic summit. It’s a journey we will never forget!

Our trip will be with the company Global Adventure Challenges which means we are climbing with experienced guides, porters and a doctor.  The climb is over 10 days starting on 17th September 2020 and the climb is ranked “extreme”!  We will climb the Uhuru Peak following the Machame Route.  We will be trekking about 7-8 hours each day, apart from the summit day when we will trek about 15 hours through the night.  As well as the long treks, we will also need to cope with the fatigue from the high altitude; air pressure and oxygen will be at about 60% of what it is normally.  The slow climb, regular rests and climbing high/sleeping low should all help with this. We will be sleeping in tents in very basic conditions which adds to the challenge and experience!!  Just writing all of this makes me nervous, but also very excited!!  Wish us luck on our adventure :o)  Love Vanessa and Kirsty xx