A mum is sharing her little girl’s battle with cancer after she was diagnosed with the disease when showing signs of fatigue and unexplained bruising.
When Shannon Sheehan took her excited daughter, Poppy, now five, to visit Santa’s Grotto, she finally felt like life had fallen into place – but weeks later, this was all taken away in an instant.
The mum-of-one, aged 26, began noticing signs of fatigue and unexplained bruises on her plucky tot’s body and quickly, sought out medical advice.
Sadly, little Poppy was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, a type of white blood cell cancer, and now, they’re sharing their harrowing ordeal in a bid to warn others.
“It’s been the most emotional time of my life and I wouldn’t wish it upon my worst enemy,” Shannon, a full-time carer, from Grimsby, told NeedToKnow.co.uk.
“Our lives now revolve around the heart-wrenching reality of my little girl being sick.
“It’s been such an aggressive toll on her and the financial strain is unbearable, especially with Christmas coming up, as I’ve had to quit my job to become her full-time carer.
“But no matter what, Poppy’s spirit has remained unbroken and I’m sticking by her side with bravery each step of the way.”
Shannon and Poppy are now regularly visiting Sheffield Children’s’ Hospital for chemotherapy treatment and blood transfusions in a bid to combat the disease.
Sadly though, the little girl has lost her “precious” locks of hair and while it’s torn the mum apart, her daughter is still continuing to fight her battle with pride.
She said: “I remember looking her and thinking she was still so beautiful without hair.
“I’ve had to reassure her of this a lot, and her resilience has been truly remarkable.
“Her eyes constantly sparkle each day and when they had to shave off her head, she didn’t even flinch and said: ‘Take it off, I don’t need it anymore’ – which made me well up with such proud feeling.”
While the lead up to Christmas was spent in hospital last year, the family are now planning on celebrating the festive season with a trip to the Lake District to celebrate the small milestones achieved.
Shannon added: “We’ve still got a long road ahead, but her hair is slowly growing back and I’ve started to regain hope for a brighter future.
“I’m going to give her the best Christmas possible with all the presents she wants and unlimited chocolate.
“It’ll be a celebration of love, life and strength.
“She’s taught me a lot about the power of courage and keep the spirit alive no matter how hard things get – she’s my shining star.”
