Mitchell, Ont. toddler fighting cancer 'like a champ'
Claire Nicholson has spent most of her young life in hospital, after being diagnosed with leukemia just days before her first birthday.
“It’s crushing,” says Claire’s mother, Mandy. “You never expect something like that to happen to your or your family. It’s always to people you know.”
Following months of chemotherapy treatments in London, there was optimism that Claire’s cancer had gone away by late last year, but in May, the Nicholson’s got word that Claire’s cancer was back, and she’s been in hospital, ever since.
“She’s a champ. Other than when she’s really sick, you’d never know that she was going through cancer. She putters along like a normal toddler would. She talks better than most two years old, better than most four year olds, really. Other than cancer, she’s really healthy,” says Mandy.
Mitchell, Ont. toddler Claire Nicholson fighting leukemia in this undated photo. (Source: Nicholson family)
Mitchell, Ont. toddler Claire Nicholson fighting leukemia in this undated photo. (Source: Nicholson family)
Nicholson says they would be struggling even more, if not for their hometown of Mitchell’s support, with meals, money, and words of encouragement.
“Without them, it would be a much darker place,” says Mandy.
Claire is currently fighting a fungal infection, as she awaits a bone marrow transplant. Family and community members are stepping up to get tested, as a potential match.
“If you are between the ages of 17 and 35, you could be someone’s lifeline,” says Perth-Wellington MP John Nater, who is pushing the public to join Canada’s stem cell registry by clicking here.
Mitchell, Ont. toddler Claire Nicholson fighting leukemia in this undated photo. (Source: Nicholson family)
Mitchell, Ont. toddler Claire Nicholson fighting leukemia in this undated photo. (Source: Nicholson family)
While there is optimism young Claire can push her leukemia back into remission again, the bone marrow transplant is the best long term solution for her.
“Any child that’s had a childhood cancer is preconditioned to develop other types of cancer later on in life, but the hope is this type of cancer she has now, won’t come back,” says Mandy.
To learn more about young Claire’s journey, you can visit this Facebook page..
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
"It's a bit of a complicated pattern; we've got a lot going on," said Jennifer Smith of the Meteorological Service of Canada in an interview with CTVNews.ca on Wednesday. "[As is] typical with weather, all of these things are related."
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Police tangle with students in Texas and California as wave of campus protest against Gaza war grows
Police tangled with student demonstrators in Texas and California while new encampments sprouted Wednesday at Harvard and other colleges as school leaders sought ways to defuse a growing wave of pro-Palestinian protests.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.