An optician helped save her niece's life after spotting she had a rare type of eye cancer. Laura Leafe became concerned about her niece, Olivia, after the three-year-old's mum alerted the optician to an 'unusual glow' in her daughter's eye.
When Laura, 37, checked over brave Olivia she was shocked see retinoblastoma - a rare type of eye cancer. The youngster was quickly sent to Birmingham Women's and Children's Hospital for treatment.
Olivia, then aged two, underwent intra-arterial chemotherapy. The tumour shrank and is now under control but there are still small areas to treat which means she requires monthly check-ups.
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"I was already concerned due to the photograph Oliva's mum, Ewelina, had sent me," said Laura who lives in North Yorkshire. "But I was shocked to see what I suspected to be a retinoblastoma.
"I was very thankful to be an optometrist and in the position to be able to help at one of the most stressful times of my family’s life. I am so glad Ewelina asked about the ‘reflection’. If I hadn’t been in this profession, the diagnosis may have come much later."
Ewelina first noticed the unusual white glow in Olivia's eye shortly after her second birthday. "I noticed a strange glare in her right eye when she was was watching TV," she said.
"I was observing her eye in different angles as the glare was not easily visible. I just decided to take a few photos when the glare was more visible and send them to her dad to see what he thinks.
"I did not think it was anything serious, but my instinct was telling me to check what it was. I decided to send the photos to Olivia’s aunt, Laura, who is an optometrist.
"In the meantime, I started to search on Google ‘glare and reflection’ in the eye. I came across retinoblastoma and started to read about it and that's when I started to panic."
Signs of retinoblastoma, according to Childhood Eye Cancer Trust (CHECT), include a white glow which may only appear in certain lights and/or a change in the appearance of the eye. This includes the eye becoming swollen.
Ewelina added: "After the examination, a diagnosis of retinoblastoma was confirmed. We were heartbroken. But we were trying to behave as normally as possible in front of Olivia.
"We cannot stress enough how important it is to observe your child and if there is something suspicious to have it checked straight away. This experience had a massive effect on us as a family."
Richard Ashton, Chief Executive of CHECT, said: “Retinoblastoma is rare, with around one baby or young child being diagnosed in the UK each week. We are grateful that Olivia’s case, her symptoms were recognised by her parents, her aunt and the hospital teams, and an urgent referral was made so that she could receive treatment."
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