Brave Ella's fight against cancer
A TUGUN couple has been on an emotional rollercoaster after learning their three-year-old daughter has cancer just weeks after discovering they were going to have another child.
Stacey Styles and Mark Doolan had been trying to have a baby and were rewarded earlier this year with news that Ms Styles was pregnant.
But a slight fall of their first child Ella Doolan while playing about two months ago changed their life again.
"If anyone looked at her they would think she was just a happy child," Ms Styles said.
"She had a bump while playing and it was nothing really. She didn't even cry.
"That night we looked at the area and found a lump about the size of a golf ball."
Ella was diagnosed with rhabdomyosarcoma soon after.
The disease is a cancerous tumour of the muscles that are attached to the bones.
Ms Styles said doctors told her that the bump could have dislodged the tumour and cause it to protrude from between her ribs.
"I guess we were lucky in that respect that we didn't discover it when it was any worse," she said.
Now Ella's small body but large spirit are going through chemotherapy and she requires surgery in September to remove the fifth rib that the cancer damaged.
"She is okay," Ms Styles said.
"She has lost a lot of weight.
"She is still very strong and still happy but there are the days where she is really drained.
"She is in a lot of pain at the moment but that's because the tumour is reducing in size."
The family has had their lives uprooted and are moving from their home in Tugun to Brisbane to be closer to treatment.
"We finally secured a place close to the hospital," Ms Styles said.
Ms Styles said the support from the community was amazing.
The Kingscliff Football Club is hosting a fundraiser for Ella with junior competitions and games planned for tomorrow at its Kingscliff clubhouse, starting at 10am.
Ella's grandmother, Debbie Styles is a long-serving committee member of the club.
"It just opens your eyes when you see all of those kids who are battling cancer," Ms Styles said.
Donations can be made through a gofundme.com page set up by a family friend.
