The parents of a Nova Scotia baby battling a rare form of cancer are taking their fight to Toronto in the hopes of saving her eyesight.
Hazel Rhindress lives with retinoblastoma, a rare cancer of the eye that can occur in early childhood. Her mother was diagnosed with the same disease when she was four years old.
“They decided just to take my eye, and so when she was born, I asked to get her eyes tested at the IWK and they tested her at four months old,” explains Holly Timmons.
They found three tumours in each of her eyes. Now 13 months old, Hazel has undergone radiation laser treatments and four rounds of chemotherapy at the IWK Health Centre in Halifax over the last 10 months.
“She was declared cancer free last month and at this month’s checkup, they told us that the cancer came back in the left eye,” says Timmons. “This tumour is not growing, but it’s not going away.”
“Our spirits were very high and we were feeling absolutely wonderful, probably the best we felt in 10 months, and then it was just like we were crushed again,” says Hazel’s father, Chris Rhindress.
The Amherst, N.S. girl will be travelling to Toronto Tuesday for further treatment at the Hospital for Sick Children. All costs are covered, and a GoFundMe page has been launched to help her parents with airfare, hotel, and future medical expenses.
“My biggest fear right now is that she’ll lose her eyesight or her eyes,” says Timmons. “I know they’re working very hard to avoid that, but I am worried that that will happen to her.”
“It’s been hard on us and it’s been hard on her. I mean, you couldn’t tell that it’s been hard on her, but she’s been quite the warrior,” says Rhindress. “We’d just like to let everyone know that we appreciate everything they’ve done.”
Hazel and her parents are scheduled to be in Toronto for two days. Depending on what the doctors find, the family is hoping they won’t have to return.
With files from CTV Atlantic's Dan MacIntosh
