In November we received the heart-breaking news that Sophia had relapsed and the Leukaemia has returned.

Hearing that the cancer was back was a huge shock and very upsetting.  It has taken Kate and I a while for us to come to terms with it, which is why we haven’t posted anything online until now.

We don’t want to dwell on the negatives, as since the diagnosis Sophia has been so brave and an inspiration to us all. And most importantly, she has responded brilliantly to treatment so far. She’s already been through a round of intense chemotherapy and two cycles of immunotherapy and fortunately, no cancer cells can be traced in her body!

However, this doesn’t necessarily mean that there are none there.  She will still have to undergo chemotherapy until the end of 2023 to ensure every single cancer cell is gone, otherwise she could relapse again. This includes an intense phase from now until the end of May, where she will experience severe joint and tummy pain. She will also be weak, fatigued, severely immunocompromised and she will lose her hair again. 

I am sure I speak for most parents in this horrible situation when I say that I wish it was me going through this and not Sophia. But unfortunately I can’t take it off her, however much I want to. 

Something I can do to support Sophia is shave my head and go through the hair loss with her. Whilst Sophia has no hair, I have vowed not to have anything either - we will be bald buddies together!

Joining the bald buddies team will be Sam Felgate, Adam McPhee, Adam Townes, Wayne Goodey, Damion Summers and Mark Roberts, who will also be shaving their heads. We'd also love to add more people to team, so we can spread the word further and raise more money! Please let me know if you're up for joining us.

If you would like to show your support for Sophia and us all, please donate to Candlelighters. Candlelighters is an incredible charity that has supported us from when Sophia was first diagnosed and they are still supporting us now. 

Candlelighters offer families like ours a whole range of services, such as haircuts, massages, food and laundry when you’re stuck on the ward and access to talking therapies and other support groups when you need them… for life.

I am extremely proud to be a trustee of the charity. 

*Sophia is feeling quite self-conscious about losing her hair this time round.  Please don’t discuss this with her directly, or if you’re a school parent, we’d appreciate it if you didn’t tell your children as she may wear a wig (which she recently got from the lovely Little Princess Trust) or a bandana. She might be OK with it over time - we’ll take her lead. We just don’t know yet. Thanks!