THE ROAD TO RECOVERY

Stephen Ormrod, his wife, Jane, and their daughters Georgia and Tasha were what he would describe as just a regular family, until a brain tumour diagnosis in 2009 threw their lives into chaos. “Georgia, now 27, was 12 years old when she started experiencing really bad headaches that would wake her in the night and make her feel quite unwell. We were back and forth to the GP and A&E but kept being told it was just migraines. However, my wife and I knew there was something wrong.”

Eventually, Stephen got Georgia an appointment with a consultant through his healthcare at work. “While we were waiting for the appointment we had to go to A&E again and mentioned she had an appointment soon with this doctor. They decided to do some scans so they were ready for the doctor when we had our appointment, which shockingly showed a tumour in her brain.”

“We were told her chances of survival were 50:50. You have no preparation for hearing that, and even if we had thought in moments that it was a possibility, I don’t think either of us had allowed it to be more than just a small thought.” Stephen and Jane focused on making sure Georgia was stimulated while in her coma in whatever way they could. “We read to her lots and arranged for someone from a charity to come in and sing and play some of her favourite songs on a keyboard as Georgia loves music. She actually mouthed some of the words of the song in her coma, which was absolutely amazing.”

After around three months, Georgia started to very gradually awake from her coma and was put on maintenance chemotherapy for the next year at home. “The treatment cured Georgia of cancer, which we are extremely grateful for, but it has changed her life in so many ways.”

One thing that has helped to improve Georgia’s quality of life is the charity Teens Unite, which Stephen found out about by chance. “I thought their work supporting teenagers and young people affected by cancer was fantastic, so I spoke to them about Georgia. Within a couple of months, they had taken her to see The Lion King musical with a bunch of other teenagers, then she started going to a number of their events, including chocolate making and makeup afternoons.”

“Now she’s getting a bit older, Georgia does maybe two or three events a year with the charity and they’re still amazing. They do the odd online games night, and we recently took part in a Bake Off event as a family, which gave us time to be together and have fun. “The amazing thing about the charity is that there is no pity and no judgement, as Georgia does sometimes get judged by other people because she still has no hair and falls over a lot. There’s so much love and care, so much fun and laughter, and everyone is different but there’s a shared experience and knowledge.”

“So many people are surviving cancer now, which is fantastic, but that’s only half the battle. This charity helps people to pick up their lives and make the most of them, giving young people the chance to do almost nothing other than be normal. That’s something really special and we are so grateful.”

THE CANDIS BIG GIVE AMOUNT RAISED: £41,625

• Teens Unite supports those in their teens and early 20s whose lives have been impacted by cancer.
• The money raised in the Candis Big Give will support the charity’s annual programme of in-person and digital workshops and activities.
• The activities are delivered nationally with some sessions taking place on hospital wards. The charity also hosts short residential stays.
• As survival rates for teenagers with cancer are high, the emotional, social and physical challenges facing these teenagers can impact their ability to actually live their life following medical recovery. The charity aims to support mental, physical and social recovery and allow these young people to flourish.
• The activities will help young people with cancer to develop skills, build resilience, improve social connections and reduce feelings of isolation.
• 95 per cent of teenagers who have cancer will have a physical disability following their treatment, so a lot of activities focus on physically rebuilding the body through activities such as mountain climbing or bike riding.
• Visit teensunite.org or call 01992 440091 to find out more.