Six-month-old Maddison Holt from Gipton with mum Natasha and dad Rob. Photo by Simon Hulme.
Little Maddison Holt, from Gipton, was diagnosed with a Myofibroblastic Tumour just months after she was born in August 2019.
It was a huge blow for parents Rob, 31 and Natasha, 30, who had been overjoyed when they found out that they had fallen pregnant with their first child after five-years of trying to conceive.
Rob, a key cutter at Timpson, said: "Maddison is our first child and was a long time in the making.
"The IVF was a gruelling process and we must've gone through ten pregnancy tests a day but we were beyond happy when we got pregnant.
"Maddison was an unbelievable miracle."
One month after her birth Rob and Natasha, who have been together for eight years, got married in front of all their family.
The father-of-one said: "It was amazing to have Maddison there - though no one cared about us, she stole the show in her little gorgeous white dress."
However, the new parents' joy was short-lived when, just one month later, grandma Mandy noticed a hard lump in the youngster's stomach as she was soothing her.
The family rushed her straight to Leeds General Infirmary where they spent eight difficult weeks waiting for a diagnosis.
In November, they were told that Maddison, then three-months old, had a rare cancer called Inflammatory Myofibroblastic Tumour.
Natasha, who also works at Timpson, said: "I just dont think we expected it. We 'd only just had a baby so emotions were already all over the place.
"Wed struggled for so long to get pregnant, wed gone through the IVF and finally got her and then to be told told she had cancer - it was hard.
"When you hear that word your first thought is 'is she going to die?' We didnt know how to feel or what was going to happen."
It was a particularly difficult time for Rob, who had seen several family members lose their lives to cancer.
He added: "The cancer diagnosis was the worst thing I could have heard.
"Theres been a lot of cancer in my family and my first reaction was to fear the worst because Id never known someone beat it.
During the time we were on the cancer ward I even had to go to my auntie's funeral, who had died from cancer, and then head straight back to the ward.
"I felt broken, raw and lost. Whenever I left the hospital I would cry for hours on end."
Maddison began a treatment of chemotherapy to try and shrink the tumour down in size and in late November, she was allowed to be taken home and return to the hospital for treatment.
Unfortunately, just weeks later she was rushed back into the LGI with a bad case of bronchitis.
She was placed into isolation, put on oxygen and ended up having three blood transfusions.
The family was told that Maddison could not go home until she was able to breathe for 24 hours on her own - and on Christmas Eve she managed it.
Maddison spent her first Christmas and New Year's at home with mum, dad and family before going back to the consultants on January 3.
Unfortunately, the family were told that the chemotherapy had not shrunk the tumour and Maddison required surgery.
Rob said: "I was so scared. Shed just started to smile and had her first giggle. Selfishly, I couldnt bear the thought of not seeing that gorgeous giggle again.
"There was one question I needed to know but could not bring myself to ask - Am I going to see my daughter again?
"I couldnt even get the words out, I physically could not say it. Looking back, Im thankful as I didnt need that answer."
Maddison underwent the 6-hour surgery just days later on January 8.
After the surgery she was taken to the high dependency ward where her parents were given the good news that the doctors had removed 100 per cent of the tumour.
Rob said: "Everyone handled the news much better than me, I just started at her and cried and cried. We were all so happy.
"The surgeons had to remove a third of her bowel to get all of the tumour but aside from that it the whole thing was gone.
"We we warned that we would have to wait a while to see if she could digest food and if her bowel was working normally but just days later as I was driving in the car I got a call to say that she'd been to the toilet.
"It sounds silly but I went mental. I rang everyone in the family to tell them and I was jumping up and down as though Leeds United had already been promoted. I was absolutely buzzing.
"By Monday, she was drinking milk and laughing and giggling - that gorgeous giggle I didn't think I would see again for a while.
"And by Tuesday, our girl was home."
Rob is now sharing his family's story to raise awareness about childhood cancers and to encourage people to open up and talk about what they're going through.
He said: "One day I just opened the notes app on my phone and began writing and writing.
"When I actually read back through what Id written it was really emotional. It was like Id finally grasped the enormity of what had happened instead of keeping it all bottled up inside.
"I sat and stared at the note for about 30 minutes before I decided to share it online. I put it on my personal Facebook and, as Im a huge Leeds United fan, in some Leeds oriented groups too.
"I didnt want people to feel sorry for me, I just thought that if I could help one person recognise the signs of cancer or open up emotionally, then it was worth it. Mental health is so important.
"I had hundreds of supportive messages on the posts and people sent me private messages really opening up about what theyve been through.
"I had people who had been through a deep loss or who were going through a similar thing tell me that the post had given them hope. Its been really touching."
Natasha added: "Im a bit more open about what happened whereas Rob is a really private person.
"He spent so long writing the post but when he shared it everyone was so supportive. We had so many messages and calls.
"It was quite weird as we weren't expecting such a huge response but its been so nice.
"Even people we knew from school or old jobs stop us in the supermarket now to see how we are and ask how Maddison is doing."
Little Maddison, now six-months-old, is finally home with her family and cancer free.
Her parents describe her as "amazing."
Natasha said: "Looking at her now you wouldnt even know what she had been through.
"Shes really becoming her own person.
"Shes always giggling, is just so chilled and always chuntering away. Shes amazing."
Rob and Natasha are now hoping to give back by supporting Leeds based children's cancer charity Candlelighters.
This Easter, the couple are appealing to people across the city to help deliver a chocolate egg to all the children in Leeds General Infirmary.
Anyone who wants to donate an Easter egg can drop them off at any Timpson's store in the city.
Go here to see the original:
Leeds couple's five years of IVF before newborn baby diagnosed with cancer - Yorkshire Evening Post
- The 13 Best Pregnancy Podcasts of 2021 - Healthline - January 23rd, 2021
- Insights on the Medical Tourism Global Market to 2027 - Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast - Yahoo Finance - January 23rd, 2021
- Welsh MP Alex Davies-Jones says she's had most of her cervix removed after delaying her smear test - Wales Online - January 23rd, 2021
- West Lothian woman is 'one of Scotland's youngest breast cancer survivors' - Edinburgh Live - January 23rd, 2021
- Be aware of myomas - Deccan Herald - January 23rd, 2021
- Feminine Hygiene in Cuba: Inventions and other Rags - Havana Times - January 23rd, 2021
- I Wanted to Give My Daughter a Sibling. I Got Covid Instead. - The New York Times - January 15th, 2021
- The Fertility Partners Welcomes Another IVF Centre to its Growing Network, The Toronto Institute For Reproductive Medicine, and Acquires Sperm Bank... - January 15th, 2021
- INVO Bioscience Expands Distribution of INVOcell Into the Pakistan Infertility Market with Galaxy Pharma Ltd. - BioSpace - January 15th, 2021
- What if I end up with triplets? What you need to know about IVF - News24 - January 15th, 2021
- Nearly a Quarter of Americans 21 To 50 Years Old to Consider Having Children if Fertility Treatments Are More Affordable, Says Fertility Access Survey... - January 15th, 2021
- RTE newsreader Eileen Whelan says she feels so lucky to have kid with hubby Larry Donnelly following IVF - The Irish Sun - January 15th, 2021
- This Former Banking Executive Wanted to Help a Friend Suffering From Lupus. Now He Leads a BioTech Company on the Verge of a Breakthrough COVID... - January 15th, 2021
- Wigan couple celebrate after long wait to take their baby home - Wigan Today - January 15th, 2021
- Racism and Bias Make Infertility Treatment Even More Inaccessible to Couples of Color - Well+Good - January 15th, 2021
- Philips and Merck partner to advance personalized fertility treatment - GlobeNewswire - January 15th, 2021
- Data Show More Women Are Freezing Their Eggs During the Pandemic, Defying Doctors Expectations - TIME - January 15th, 2021
- 'Going Through Cancer Is Already Stressful And Isolating. Having To Deal With Delays On Top Of That Is Unimaginable' - Grazia - January 15th, 2021
- 'Selfish sister-in-law trying to have IVF baby cut me off when I had my son ' - Mirror Online - January 15th, 2021
- Woman has 12 operations in nine years to treat common condition with no cure - Accrington Observer - January 15th, 2021
- Know the right time to undergo an IVF treatment - The Indian Express - January 4th, 2021
- England's first not-for-profit IVF clinic to open in 2021 - The Guardian - January 4th, 2021
- Department of Health can't give timeline for rollout of publicly-funded IVF - TheJournal.ie - January 4th, 2021
- My fertility treatment failed three times in 2020 and I discovered how to live with uncertainty - The Guardian - January 4th, 2021
- British charity to offer hopeful parents IVF at half the current price in new clinic - Mirror Online - January 4th, 2021
- IVF hopes for couple on heartbreaking journey to become parents - Coventry Live - January 4th, 2021
- Insights into the world of IVF - Mid-day - January 4th, 2021
- The Fertility Partnership help people welcome longed-for babies into the world - Reading Chronicle - January 4th, 2021
- Joy as Hampshire couples welcome IVF babies into the world - Portsmouth News - January 4th, 2021
- Pros and cons of embracing motherhood in the late 30s - Times of India - January 4th, 2021
- Couple desperately moved to Merseyside in bid to make dreams of parenthood come true - Liverpool Echo - January 4th, 2021
- Kyle Busch and Wife Samantha Made a Major Contribution Through Their Bundle of Joy Fund in 2020 - EssentiallySports - January 4th, 2021
- Opinion: Money and sex are two good reasons to quit smoking - Montreal Gazette - January 4th, 2021
- Year-Ender 2020: 2020 Was Not Entirely Bad, Here Are 8 Amazing Things That Happened, So Let's Not Lose Hope - India.com - January 4th, 2021
- Comprehensive Report on Infertility Treatment Market 2021 | Size, Growth, Demand, Opportunities & Forecast To 2027 | Irvine Scientific Inc.,... - January 4th, 2021
- Surrogacy and HFEA Update: December 2020 (Part 2) - Family Law Week - December 18th, 2020
- Southport couple who suffered years of baby heartbreak issue Christmas plea - Lancs Live - December 18th, 2020
- Mindfulness courses for fertility and IVF from world-renowned expert Zita West - ResponseSource - December 18th, 2020
- Four Children Conceived over 10 Years from One Fresh IVF Cycle: Why Families Like the Bartleys are Seeking Care at Shady Grove Fertility (SGF) - PR... - December 16th, 2020
- The Impact You Can Make With EndoFound | EndoFound - Endometriosis Foundation of America - The Blossom - December 16th, 2020
- Mild IVF: A safer option for 37+ older women or who have low ovarian reserve - TheHealthSite - December 16th, 2020
- How AI Can Be Useful for the Infertility Medicine - Healthcare Tech Outlook - December 16th, 2020
- Acoustic waves used to select high-quality sperm in IVF - BioNews - December 16th, 2020
- This Thursday! Bonei Olam Vzakeini To Host one-of-a-kind Challah Bake Event - Yeshiva World News - December 16th, 2020
- IVF Services Market to hit $25.6 billion by 2026, at CAGR of 9.3% | In Vitro Fertilization Services - WhaTech - December 16th, 2020
- Aster CMI Hospital announces free IVF consultation to help fulfill the dreams of parenthood of infertile couples - APN News - December 16th, 2020
- 50k For A Family: The Cost Of Having Kids When You're LGBTQ+ - Refinery29 - December 16th, 2020
- Biotechnology Research Viewed With Caution Globally, but Most Support Gene Editing for Babies To Treat Disease - Pew Research Center - December 16th, 2020
- Kristen Wiig has stopped thinking about herself now she's a parent - 14-Dec-2020 - NZ Entertainment news - NZCity - December 16th, 2020
- Tips to keep in mind while deciding to opt for IVF treatment - Times of India - December 6th, 2020
- How biotech startup Seragen is reworking infertility treatments with regenerative therapies - YourStory - December 6th, 2020
- This snowflake baby is just two years younger than her mom: a record breaker - PennLive - December 6th, 2020
- Earls Barton couple's 12-year fertility journey ends with birth of bouncing baby and an app - Northampton Chronicle and Echo - December 6th, 2020
- Kashmera Shah: I feel proud to say that I have worked extremely hard on my body and didnt go under the k - Times of India - December 6th, 2020
- Should you freeze your embryo? A gynaecologist explains - The Indian Express - December 6th, 2020
- 6 things you need to know about polycystic ovary syndrome - Heart - December 6th, 2020
- Covid halts baby planning in Hyderabad! Couples apprehensive over having babies amid pandemic - Times Now - December 6th, 2020
- Psychological status of infertile patients who had in vitro fertilization treatment interrupted or postponed due to COVID-19 pandemic: a... - December 1st, 2020
- Presagen announces IVF success story with first baby born globally aided by its artificial intelligence (AI) applied to medical imaging - PRNewswire - December 1st, 2020
- In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) Treatment Market Incredible Possibilities, Growth Analysis And Forecast To 2026 - Murphy's Hockey Law - December 1st, 2020
- Risk of ovarian cancer is not associated with ART in long-term cohort study - ESHRE - December 1st, 2020
- Miracle baby Oscar weighed less than a bag of sugar - Bradford Telegraph and Argus - December 1st, 2020
- Matthew Wright stalker slapped with restraining order after threatening to snatch stars baby - The Sun - December 1st, 2020
- After three rounds of IVF I had to accept, at 40, my miscarriage was the end of my fertility road - Telegraph.co.uk - November 26th, 2020
- Indira IVF's first-born Navya, the flagbearer in the quest to eradicate infertility, celebrates her 10th birthday - Udaipur Kiran - November 26th, 2020
- COVID-19 outbreak at Burnaby Hospital: 55 patients and 44 staff test positive after fire - The Georgia Straight - November 26th, 2020
- Prioritising IVF treatment in the post COVID 19 era: a predictive modelling study based on UK national data - DocWire News - November 26th, 2020
- Mum gives birth to twins two years apart after miracle IVF treatment - Daily Record - November 26th, 2020
- Single Women in South Korea Have Rights to a Family Too - Human Rights Watch - November 26th, 2020
- Embryology: Understanding the science and the scientists behind a successful IVF procedure - The Times of India Blog - November 26th, 2020
- Jake the dog helped me feel normal again: readers on the pandemics acts of kindness - The Guardian - November 26th, 2020
- Global Donor Egg IVF Treatment Market 2020 with COVID-19 After Effects Growth Drivers, Top Key Players, Industry Segments and Forecast to 2026 -... - November 26th, 2020
- Dolly Partons Christmas on the Square review: An absurd barrage of singing and dancing - The Independent - November 26th, 2020
- Donor Egg IVF Services Market to Witness an Outstanding Growth during 2018-2025 | Virtus Health, Monash IVF Wesley Hospital Auchenflower - Cheshire... - November 26th, 2020
- Paloma Faith reveals why she decided to go public with second pregnancy - Belfast Telegraph - November 26th, 2020
- Sukirti Khandpal On Story 9 Months Ki: Alias Role Stands Out in A Beautiful Way From All the Cha - Zee Kannada - November 26th, 2020
- COVID-19 in B.C.: Vancouver cinemas temporarily close, with some offering online streaming options - Straight.com - November 26th, 2020
- ObsEva SA Submits Marketing Authorization Application to the European Medicines Agency for YSELTY (linzagolix) for the Treatment of Women with Uterine... - November 26th, 2020
- Its Okay To Grieve The Time Youve Lost This Year - Refinery29 - November 26th, 2020
- Female athletes urged to think about fertility and maternity - now - RNZ - November 26th, 2020