By 
CHEERS and applause thundered across a Fintona gym recently as a 14-year-old student completed Hyrox challenges designed for adults during a recent fundraising event for a cancer charity in Fintona – a remarkable feat, as just two years prior, the Dromore girl was battling an extremely rare form of cancer herself.
The fundraising event, which took place at Ryan’s Gym in mid-November drew a huge crowd; with more than 100 participants of all ages taking part, for a cause extremely close to Lily Kelly’s heart – the Children’s Cancer Unit Charity, based in the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children.
Organised by both Ryan Cunningham of Ryan’s Gym and the Kelly family, who were keen to ‘give something back’ to the exceptional unit, the day culminated in a fundraising barbecue and raffle at Fintona Golf Club, while live music serenaded the revellers.
Handing over the cheque for £9,002 to the Children’s Cancer Unit last Tuesday must have felt like a ‘full circle’ moment for Lily, as it was this time two years ago when her personal journey with cancer began; certainly a world away from the holiday festivities and light-hearted songs about Santa that other children of her age were enjoying.
Speaking with the Ulster Herald, Lily’s proud dad Paul opened up about his daughter’s brave battle, and her steely resilience in the face of the great unknown.
“Lily would never complain about anything, but there was one Sunday evening where she was saying she had very bad pains in her belly, and I had to take her to casualty,” Paul reflected. “And then they sent her home…They said there was nothing wrong with her.”
But the Kelly family, unsatisfied with this diagnosis, followed their gut instincts and sought a second opinion on what could be causing Lily’s severe pains.
“My wife Lisa took her to the doctor in Dromore the next morning, and they decided to book her in for an ultrasound just two days later for our peace of mind.
“But by the time we got home from the scan, the doctor in Dromore rang to say: ‘Get down to Enniskillen right away and take a bag with you’. They had obviously found something wrong with Lily… I’ll never forget that moment.”
By Monday, the former St Dympna’s PS pupil found herself at the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children in Belfast where she undertook a diagnostic biopsy.
The results came back quickly, but the diagnosis was terrifying: A rare cancer, with a long and complicated name. “’Solid Psuedopapillary Neoplasm of the Pancreas Metastatic to the liver’, doctors told us,” said Paul. “It was quite a rare tumour; it is very rare that children get pancreatic cancer.
“Around that same time, a footballer by the name of John McDaid was in the news after a being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and he was given just six weeks to live.
“So once the doctor told us about Lily, I just asked him: ‘Is Lily going to die?’ It wasn’t a nice question to be asking about your 12-year-old daughter, but unfortunately that’s what you have to ask.
“And he said ‘No. We’re hoping we can sort this’.
On Boxing Day 2023, Lily flew over to Birmingham for a gruelling ten-hour surgery.
“They sent her to Birmingham specifically because they needed both a pancreatic specialist and a liver specialist, and we don’t have that here in the North,” Paul said.
During the lengthy procedure, the surgeons removed Lily’s tumour, which meant taking away half of her pancreas, part of her liver and complete removal of her bile duct.
“It was either surgery – or nothing,” John said. “Her cancer was so rare that doctors told us that there were 1000s of medicines available in chemotherapy, but there was none for this type of tumour.”
Mercifully, though, the Loreto Grammar student’s operation was successful, and she returned home to Dromore around ten days later.
“She has been doing well ever since,” Paul said. “She has, however, had three liver ablations done in Belfast. That’s where they put a needle in through your back and burn wee spots off that they are unsure about. If they see anything at all during her reguar MRI scans, they just burn it off – the doctors aren’t taking any chances.”
What has really stood out to the Kelly family and Lily’s peers is her ability to stay positive, her strength of character and her bright outlook on life.
“Lily has been positive the whole way through,” Paul said.
“At the very start, when we were told she had cancer, she said, ‘Whatever it is, I’m sure they just have to cut it out. So just do that, and get on with it!’
“That was the attitude she had.
“And one of the first things she said when she woke up from her surgery was: ‘How long will it be until I can go horseriding?’,” he smiled.
And venturing into the great outdoors, Lily has done in earnest, with the 14-year-old now regularly completing 5K runs, playing football… and completing adult Hydrox challenges!
“She’s doing whatever she can to stay healthy and keep her body healthy,” Paul said. “As she lost the part of her pancreas that controls the enzymes, she now has to take a medication called ‘CREON’ every time she eats to help her body break down fatty foods.
“But Lily doesn’t want to be seen as a sick person,” Paul said. “She want to be someone who inspires others – especially those facing a cancer diagnosis. She always stays positive, and wants to show others that there can be a light at the end of a dark tunnel.”
Concluding, the Kelly family have expressed their heartfelt thanks to all of the businesses and local people that supported both the Hyrox fundraising challenge at Ryan’s Gym and the barbecue that followed at the Fintona Golf Club.
“The generosity has been just amazing,” Paul concluded. “Thank you all from the bottom of our hearts.”
