'Positivity helped me through my cancer journey'

A woman whose life was "snatched away" by cancer at the age of 20 has urged others to live with a positive mindset.

Lilli Hales, from Hull, was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) in June last year and was admitted to Castle Hill Hospital, Cottingham, where she spent her graduation ceremony and 21st birthday.

Despite feeling like she was "on a merry-go-round" that she "couldn't get off", Lilli was able to ring the cancer-free bell in March and says she is now making the most of each day.

Speaking to others going through similar experiences, Lilli said: "Just keep going, you've got it. If you're having a bad day, have a bad day, but just keep going."

Lilli, who studied drama and theatre at the University of Hull, was given a graduation ceremony on Castle Hill Hospital grounds by staff, so that she did not miss out on the milestone.

"If I didn't have such a positive environment while I was in hospital, it would have been such a different journey," Lilli said.

While working part-time at Starbucks and towards a 2:1 in her studies, Lilli was diagnosed with AML after initially putting it down to an iron deficiency.

"I'd been feeling unwell for quite a while, I was pale and I'd been having dizzy spells, so I went to my GP who arranged a blood test," she said.

When she was asked back to the GP to receive her results, she said "things started to move really quickly" and she was admitted to the Teenage and Young Adult Unit at Castle Hill the same day.

She underwent two rounds of chemotherapy, losing her hair during the first and experiencing mucositis where she could not eat or drink.

"I felt like my life got snatched away from me. I was planning all these things but everything just had to stop," Lilli said.

Lilli's mum Tracy Hales, who had just recovered from a brain tumour before Lilli was diagnosed, said Lilli's room on Ward 33 was "full of colour, love and laughter amongst the tears".

She said: "You kind of hold your breath at every appointment, but we didn't take this journey and let it beat us, we took it and conquered it."

Lilli was given a bone marrow transplant at St James's Hospital, Leeds, in December, and was home in time to celebrate Christmas with her family.

By March, she was given the all clear, and rang the bell at Queen's Centre for Oncology and Haematology in Cottingham.

Both Lilli and Tracy said the past four years had made them appreciate every day and live in the moment.

"I used to lie in bed and not go out or get dressed," Lilli said.

"You never know what's round the corner so I get up every day and talk to my friends and family."

Charlene Kent, a youth support worker who helped Lilli in hospital, said: "To think how poorly Lilli was and then to see her now, looking so well and running around on the grass with her niece, it's just incredible."

Lilli said her immediate focus is on herself and her family, but hopes to open her own musical theatre school one day.

Lilli said it was really important to "trust your body" and get checked out if anything feels unusual.

Giving advice to others, Tracy said: "Live every day. Don't plan for tomorrow, don't think about yesterday, live for the day.

"It's the start of a journey, not the one you'd maybe planned and there will be humps and bumps along the way.

"But then the road will get flatter again and there will be a tunnel, and one day that light will shine."

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