Galway mum wants to inspire others with daughter’s cancer story
When Fiona Cubbard was sent home from an out-of-hours GP service for her daughter Megan, a niggling feeling kept her awake at night.
Two years on from a cancer diagnosis for the seven-year-old, and after a lengthy and challenging but successful round of treatment, Fiona says parents should always listen to their gut when they know something is not right.
In May 2023, Fiona and her husband, Alan, from Westside, noticed that their daughter was passing blood in her urine and that started them on a path that “turned our lives upside down” – starting with a visit to the out-of-hours service.
“He was a nice man but felt he wasn’t really listening to me. He checked her out and said it was a bladder infection. I said to him I didn’t think it was because I’ve had them in the past and there was too much blood. I had taken pictures and it wasn’t normal.
“He kind of fobbed me off, to be honest. And he said if you’re not happy, go for a second opinion,” recalls Fiona.
“We went home and I couldn’t sleep that night. I had a gut feeling – I felt something wasn’t right,” she adds.
In the days that followed, they visited their family GP, Dr Enda Devitt at Whitehall Medical Centre in the city and Fiona credits Dr Devitt with saving her daughter’s life.
The scariest thing, says Fiona, was that other than the blood, there was no other symptoms and Megan was feeling well – running and cycling around as she always had been.
Megan was referred for an emergency scan at UHG and, under the excellent care of Paediatric Endocrinology Consultant, Dr Niamh McGrath, she received a diagnosis of a Wilms’ Tumour.
She was referred to Crumlin Children’s Hospital in Dublin where months of treatment, involving chemo, the removal of Megan’s kidney and radiotherapy followed.
“It’s scary to think that one day, your child can be fine and then, all of a sudden, you’re dealing with cancer,” she said.
Caption: The Cubbard family pictured recently after a West United match at Eamon Deacy Park. On the outside are Alan and Fiona Cubbard, with their sons, Alan, left, and Ryan, Jonathan (held by Ryan) and Patrick. Second from right is Megan and beside her cousin, Noria Rogers. Photo: Joe O'Shaughnessy.
Read Megan’s inspiring story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.