A child cancer survivor who has just qualified as a paediatric nurse aims to specialise in oncology care so she can help children fight the same disease she bravely overcame.
Ciara Downey spent two and a half years undergoing gruelling treatment after she was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia (ALL) in 2011, when she was only 10.
During that time, the 22-year-old says she promised herself two things - that she would win her fight and that she would one day help care for children in the way that she was cared for by medical staff.
In recent weeks, she qualified with a degree in children nursing in Aberdeen in Scotland and intends to further her studies to specialise in oncology.
The native of Inniskeen, Co. Monaghan says she is genuinely able to empathise with a child's confusion and pain as those 'superheroes' are pumped with chemotherapy and prodded with needles.
"I remember I had a limp which my parents thought was a hamstring injury from football but when I started to get pale and really tired, the GP sent me for further tests which discovered I had ALL," she said.
"Very quickly, my life got turned upside down and instead of spending time with my classmates or competing in football competitions, I was spending my childhood in hospital, being pumped with chemo and trying on different wigs because my hair fell out twice.
"For most kids missing school is the best day they could ask for but for a child fighting cancer, being able to get out of bed, walk into school and spend the full day is the dream they want returned to them.
"After diagnosis, I was travelling in the back of the car to my Gran’s in Dublin and I kept asking my parents what I had because I couldn't pronounce leukaemia.
"My treatment for the cancer which affected my blood and bone marrow lasted two and a half years and I felt like I'd always be that child with cancer. But it did end.
"It was a huge journey to travel but I had fantastic love and support from my parents Tom and Pauline, brothers Conor and Danny, family and friends.
“To say goodbye to blood results, lumbar punctures, chemotherapy and visits to hospital because of temperature spikes is the hope for so many children and their families who get a cancer diagnosis.
“During my treatment, there were two things I was certain about. I was going to do my absolute best to get through the illness with my head held high. There is nothing to be ashamed of, I was fighting a fight that no child should ever have to face.
“The second thing that became clear during my treatment was that I wanted to help care for children the way the staff on the oncology ward of St John’s Ward (Crumlin) cared for me. So once I finished school, I headed to Scotland in 2019 to study children’s nursing and my dream has just come true - I’m a paediatric staff nurse."
During her training, Ciara worked with children on an oncology ward and felt that, because of her personal experience, they felt more at ease and more comfortable to chat to someone who had been through the same treatment.
When I told them about me, you could instantly see relief and hope in the eyes of the child and their parents. The older kids especially appreciate talking to someone who has been there and, as Jimmy Norman of Aoibheann’s Pie Tie says, has “walked the walk”.
"I also experienced the goodness of the many charities like Aoibheann's Pink Tie, Make A Wish, Barretstown, Carrick Cancer and so many others that do all they can to ease other burdens of families to ensure they can concentrate solely on their child.
"The support from my local hospital in Drogheda, Co Louth and the oncology specialist nurse, Connie, who works there, meant that I was able to be treated, for part of my treatment, closer to home. The support, guidance and teaching that my family and I received from Connie was outstanding, it made things that little bit easier in such a difficult time.
Despite all they endure,"I tell the children to keep strong. They are all superheroes with the strongest souls and the bravest hearts. They are the happiest children, yet the sickest children in the hospital but they won't give up and we shouldn't give up on them ever.
"I've still a long way to go to treat children who were in my shoes but I've taken another huge step towards that goal and I can't wait for the day it comes true."
As Childhood Cancer Awareness month draws to an end, Jimmy Norman, co-founder of Aoibheann's Pink Tie (APT) said: "I believe Ciara and people like her are a shining light in a world that can sometimes seem so dark."
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