Huddersfield youngster Eden Smith remains all clear of cancer after completing most of her specialist treatment.

Just over three years ago the nine-year-old was diagnosed with high-risk neuroblastoma which triggered months of gruelling treatment that has ultimately been successful but the only way to try to stop it coming back is to get specialist treatment in New York.

That’s costly but the Huddersfield community rallied round to raise more than half-a-million pounds to fund the treatment in New York which will finish at Christmas 2025.

Eden has just been back to New York for the eighth of 10 treatments with the next one scheduled for this December and a final booster just before Christmas 2025.

When she first started undergoing the treatment she had to fly to New York every few months but as time has gone on there is more space between the appointments.

 

 

Eden, who lives with parents Lee and Jen and 11-year-old sister Tia in Wooldale near Holmfirth, was given the all-clear from cancer in November 2022 but needs to undergo scans at Leeds General Infirmary every 12 weeks to ensure she’s still clear.

The latest ones have continued with the good news, but Lee says each visit to the hospital is a nervous one for them.

“These regular scans certainly keep us on our toes,” he said. “There’s always that anxiety with us hoping that Eden continues to be all clear but it’s also a reminder that Eden’s not out of the woods yet and there is still some way to go.

“The most recent ones have been all clear, showing no signs of anything which is great.”

Lee flew with Eden and Tia to New York in June for her latest injection which was as painful as always. They were there a week and managed to visit the fire station which was the base for the Ghostbusters in the first film back in 1984.

“It’s actually a working fire station,” said Lee. “When we’ve tried to go before the doors were shut but an engine had just gone out so we were able to see inside which has plenty of reminders that it was used in the film.”

 

 

Eden will return to New York in December for her ninth injection and then the last one will be a booster the following December.

The Smith family continue to try to get back to normal after a tough few years and have just been on a family holiday to Ibiza.

Eden has been doing swimming lessons at Denby Dale and has completed just about all her badges. She also dances twice a week with the Silk School of Dance in Honley.

The neuroblastoma Eden was diagnosed with in April 2021 is a rare and aggressive childhood cancer that has a 40% to 50% chance of long-term survival at diagnosis and affects fewer than 100 children in the UK every year. Scans and tests showed the cancer was in seven places around Eden’s body.

She completed gruelling chemotherapy, had a major nine-hour operation then stem cell treatment involving a 35-day isolation stay in hospital, radiotherapy and immunotherapy. To prevent the cancer returning Eden now needs pioneering Bivalent Vaccine treatment which is only available in New York.

Written by ANDY HIRST who runs his own Yorkshire freelance journalism agency AH! PR specialising in press releases, blogging, website content and copywriting.

Please support Huddersfield Hub by becoming a Patron for just £4.99 a month to help continue our coverage of local news, charities, community events, entertainment, business and sport. To subscribe click here