A CHARITY has stepped in to support the family of a young patient battling a rare form of cancer when she flies to the US for life-saving proton beam therapy treatment.

Kids ‘n’ Cancer, the leading organisation in the UK for supporting patients in accessing proton therapy, has donated £5,000 to the family of 18-month-old Isla-Grace Large, from Yeadon, who was diagnosed with Ewing’s Sarcoma in October last year.

Isla-Grace has undergone gruelling chemotherapy but doctors told her mum, Beth Hiley, and dad, Rhys Large, both 20, that proton beam therapy was the best option for treatment to beat the disease.

After reviewing her case, the NHS agreed to fund Isla-Grace’s treatment at the ProCure Proton Therapy Centre in Oklahoma, and the family’s flights and accommodation. But Rhys will have to go without pay during their 12-week stay; while they will have to cover rent of their home in the UK and living costs during the therapy themselves.

The family have been fundraising and on Sunday a fundraising day with entertainment takes place at LA Fitness in Yeadon, from 1pm and all are welcome.

And now Kids ‘n’ Cancer co-founder Mike Hyman has told the family that the charity will donate £5,000 to help with their living costs and UK expenses.

Isla-Grace’s condition was discovered after her grandmother noticed a swelling on the side of her neck last September. A biopsy revealed she had Ewing’s Sarcoma – which affects less than 30 people a year in the UK.

She has since undergone four rounds of chemotherapy and will endure two more rounds of the treatment before undergoing an operation in March ahead of her trip to the US for proton beam therapy treatment. The treatment, which is currently not available in the UK, works by directing radiation treatment to precisely where it is needed in the body and causes minimal damage to surrounding tissue.

Mr Hyman said: “We recognise at Kids ‘n’ Cancer that it can be a huge worry for families when they are away from home for such a long period of time. We are therefore delighted to be able to offer support to Isla-Grace and her family. Whilst the NHS agreed to pay for the treatment, flights and accommodation, her family would still have the worry of the living costs and their UK costs. By donating £5,000 we hope to take some of that financial burden off them.”

Vist kidsncancer.org.uk for more information.