Doctors thought this seven-year-old girl had tonsillitis but it was a rare cancer only two children get a year

Last September, Daya Morgan-Ruffley began going back and forth to the doctors with suspected tonsillitis. Despite being given antibiotics, there was little improvement in her condition and her mother insisted that she see a specialist.

In the end, the decision was made to remove the girl’s tonsils and perform a biopsy to see if anything sinister was going on. A month later, on February 18, just a week before Daya’s seventh birthday, she received the devastating news that she had a rare form of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, diagnosed in just two children in the UK each year.

“Without my mother’s intuition and the constant urging and pleading of doctors, we could have been in a much worse situation,” said her sister Isla Morgan, 20. “Because of the seriousness [of the cancer] she needed an aggressive form of chemotherapy that required her to stay in the hospital for the next five months. As a family we are broken, but we try to be so cheerful and positive for Daya and keep hope for the future.”

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Isla, from Caldicot, Monmouthshire, said sister Daya is autistic and has trouble concentrating and being in the same place for long periods of time. “She will need a lot of simulation during her five-month stay at Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospital for Wales, as her room will be the only place she can be,” she added.

Daya’s situation has been exacerbated by other illnesses in the family, including mother Nicola Morgan, 43, who was unable to walk for many months. Her grandfather, who lived with the family, as well as their dog also died during this period. “It has taken a huge toll on Daya, leaving her upset and confused at such a young age,” Isla added.

Daya before she became unwell (Image: Isla Morgan) Enjoying the sun with her big sister Isla (Image: Isla Morgan)

“Due to my mother’s ill health she has no job and now my father cannot work because he takes care of Daya 24/7. They both live with her in the hospital. This means there is no income in my household and it has made sure my 14-year-old sister Priya lives back and forth between me and my grandparents.”

Isla, now determined to have her own tonsils removed and checked for cancer, decided to create a GoFundMe page to give Daya things to look forward to after she’s done chemotherapy. Go here to donate money to the GoFundMe page. “Her dream is to go on vacation to Disneyland with the family, and I want to make that possible for her. I want to make everything as comfortable and fun as possible for her.

(left-right) Daya with sister Priya Morgan-Ruffley, mother Nicola Morgan, sister Isla Morgan and father Rowan Morgan-Ruffley (Image: Isla Morgan) Daya is to spend five months at Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospital for Wales in Cardiff (Image : Isla Morgan) (Image: Isla Morgan)

“Daya is a strong and brave girl and I have no doubt that she will beat this. My heart breaks when I see such a nice, smiling girl get so sad and fight a battle that no one should fight, especially on her young age. Her bravery through everything she’s been through so far makes me so incredibly proud.”

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