We are The Christie magazine - Edition 6

Patient stories

Isla Gault 12-year-old Isla Gault was

Irish dancing the day she got diagnosed with a brain tumour. Now, following successful treatment, she's back doing the thing she loves best. Isla, who lives in Northern Ireland with her parents and older sister, was just nine when she was diagnosed with a medulloblastoma - a tumour that starts in the back part of the brain. She had a nine hour operation, 30 sessions of proton beam therapy at The Christie, and chemotherapy last year, all of which went well. In addition to getting back to gymnastics and dancing, she has also just finished her first year of secondary school, another big milestone. "I am so proud of how far Isla has come,” her mum Hilary says. “Her cancer was in the part of her brain that controls balance, so to see her back to doing the things she loves is amazing.” She's just so determined to get on with things; once she puts her mind to something, that's it. She's happy to be getting back to her daily life after a lot of time spent in hospital." While at The Christie, Isla benefitted from virtual reality (VR) distraction therapy while having her bloods taken. It’s part of a trial to see if it reduces treatment-related anxiety in children and teenagers going through cancer treatment. “The VR headset is just one of the ways the team made Isla feel as comfortable as possible while she was having treatment at The Christie. Her wellbeing was at the centre of everything. Before I came over, I was so worried about what it was going to be like, but they put us both at ease straight away. I can’t thank them enough,” Hilary adds.

"She's just so determined to get on with things; once she puts her mind to something, that's it. She's happy to be getting back to her daily life after a lot of time spent in hospital."

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