Little Ruby Edwards had to undergo kidney removal surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy after being diagnosed with rare cancer in 2023

What was thought to be a harmless case of “toddler belly” for a three-year-old turned into a years-long hospital battle. Now the disease has returned, and the family is clinging to hope.

The Edwards family — father Brett, mother Bianca, and children Willow, 5, Ruby, 3, and Oscar, 1 — are preparing for another 7 to 9 months of treatment for Ruby's cancer. Picture: Supplied

When the parents of one-year-old Ruby Grace Edwards took her to the emergency room in 2023 for a suspected hernia, they never expected it to turn into a two-year battle in and out of the hospital.

“(Ruby had) started to form what we thought was a toddler belly,” her mother Bianca, 35, said. “And you sort of joke about these things and how cute their toddler belly looks, because she was only 1½.”

However, the protrusion on little Ruby’s stomach grew bigger and firmer, revealing a massive tumour on her kidney.

Little Ruby Edwards had to undergo kidney removal surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy after being diagnosed with cancer in 2023. Picture: Supplied

The family has set up a GoFundMe. Picture: Supplied

Diagnosed with diffuse anaplastic Wilms – a rare childhood cancer – Ruby’s devastated parents packed their bags for a hospital stay that lasted months.

“It was quite an emotional rollercoaster from that point,” Ms Edwards said.

A tumour weighing 1.9kg was surgically removed, along with Ruby’s kidney, in July last year.

“(The tumour) was huge, they said it was the size of a small football,” Ms Edwards said.

“Next time you pick up two litres of milk, just imagine that being in the weight of an 18 month old.”

Ruby Grace Edwards was diagnosed with Diffuse Anaplastic Wilms at just 18 months old. Picture: Supplied

A rare childhood cancer – Ruby’s devastated parents packed their bags for a hospital stay that lasted months. Picture: Supplied

All seemed to be in the clear after the surgery and months of chemo and radiotherapy.

But during a family holiday in March this year, their world came crashing down again – Ruby had relapsed.

With a gruelling new treatment plan on the cards for the next seven to nine months, and a 90 per cent relapse rate, the toddler is undergoing hybrid chemotherapy protocol, stem cell transplants and radiotherapy for a tumour in her lungs.

“At night-time before Ruby goes to bed, she’ll quite often ask my husband, ‘when is my cancer going to go away? And why do I have to keep going to the hospital?’,” Ms Edwards said.

“(Ruby) accepts it, but at the same time, she knows that she’s not living a normal life like other kids around her are.

“It sort of breaks your heart, trying to explain to her that this will probably be for the rest of her life sort of thing.”

Despite the challenges, the three-year-old’s strong-willed personality shines through.

“She’s defiant, cheeky, and knows exactly what she wants,” Ms Edwards said.

A GoFundMe, and a small rural community project called ‘Run for Ruby’, was set up in preparation for the City-Bay Fun Run, with little Ruby as their purple-cladded mascot.

“Me and Brett say to each other, (Ruby’s) always been in the small percentage for a lot of things,” Ms Edwards said.

“And maybe she’ll just be in that small 10 per cent that doesn’t relapse.

“I think we hold on to that hope.”

Originally published as Little Ruby Edwards had to undergo kidney removal surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy after being diagnosed with rare cancer in 2023