For parents, nothing is more painful than to watch their child suffer through illness. They would do anything to take away the pain and burden that no innocent child should have to go through.
Such is the case for Molly Hughes, barely two years old and already suffering through stage 4 of neuroblastoma, a cancer that commonly affects children below five years old. Doctors diagnosed her with the cancer in 2017 when she was only 6 months old and she has since battled through the disease with her little body.
The survival rate for neuroblastoma is usually higher than 50 percent but it can be hard to treat when at a late stage. The treatments are something that no child should have to endure.
However, for Molly, the cancer had spread throughout much of her body, which meant intensive treatment. Over the course of 15 months, she braved through rounds of chemotherapy, stem cell transplants, surgery, radiation, and immunotherapy.
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Chelsea Hughes, Molly’s mother, said that her daughter spent 130 days in the hospital for her treatments. She recalled the tough moments when her little one “got really, really sick” because the treatments were “just so harsh” for her young body to take. Worse, one of the treatments resulted in hearing loss so Molly now has to wear hearing aids.
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Despite the heartbreaking moments, Chelsea is thankful that her child made it through all the treatments. The 21-month-old survived five rounds of chemotherapy!
The best news the family got by far came from the doctor, who told them over the phone that Molly is in remission. Chelsea said she felt so relieved and happy that she just “fell to the ground” and hugged her daughter for five minutes after she got off the phone.
Chelsea shared the happy news on Facebook and informed her readers that Molly’s scans showed clear of active cancer. She thanked everyone for their prayers, gave grace to God for his healing powers, and quoted 1 Chronicles 5:20, “He answered their prayers because they trusted in Him.”
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However, Chelsea still asks for prayers that the cancer will not return for good especially since neuroblastoma has a high risk for relapse. To prevent this from happening, Molly is now taking a trial drug that she will continue to take for two years. She will also have scans every three months to check for cancer cells.
“A lot of people have been saying she’s ‘cancer free’ but she’s not technically cancer-free for five years, but she is in remission and her scans showed no evidence of disease,” Chelsea told People.
Despite her disease, Molly never fails to smile and be a light to her parents. She now has more reason to be happy after her mommy announced that the family plans to take a trip to the beach so the little girl can play in the water all she wants, something she wanted to do in the hospital but couldn’t because of the IV in her chest.
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Molly is definitely one brave little girl and a true fighter. Her parents are also role models of pure believers in the power of God, as they remain steadfast in their faith that He will cure their daughter and keep her cancer-free.