A BRAVE little girl who overcame cancer by the age of three has been whisked to Lapland to meet Father Christmas.

Rosalia Daly-Maxwell, from Acomb, underwent six months of chemotherapy and a major operation to remove a tumour the size of an apple from her chest last year.

The operation was a success, and although Rosalia will need tests for the rest of her life to ensure the tumour has not returned, her most recent results showed she was still all clear.

Last week, Rosalia and a group of other children were invited on a special trip to Lapland by the charity When You Wish Upon A Star, after staff at Leeds General Infirmary nominated her for a place.

Rosalia, who will be four in April, travelled with her father, Robert, who said the invitation had to be kept secret until only days before the trip, just to be on the safe side.

He said: “We didn’t tell Rosalia until the last minute, because if she was poorly the week before, that would have meant she wouldn’t be able to go. When we did, she was really excited, and kept telling people she was going to Lapland to see Father Christmas. She couldn’t sleep for a couple of days before.

“It was a bit of a shock because there were lots of sick children on the plane who were still undergoing chemotherapy, so it was quite an honour to be asked along for an experience of a lifetime.”

As well as meeting Father Christmas, Rosalia and the other children visited a magic forest, enjoyed snowmobile trips, and met real-life reindeer and television stars, including Loose Women star Denise Welch, on the trip.

Natalie, Rosalia’s mother, said: “She’s really excited about Christmas now, after meeting Santa, and stroking a real reindeer and sled dogs. She’s doing absolutely brilliantly. She’s still going for check-ups, and has started pre-school which she’s really enjoying and making lots of friends.

“Rosalia also loves spending time with her five-month old sister Emily, and feeding her a bottle.”

Rosalia was voted one of the The Press’s Community Pride Children of the Year. Robert said: “She still wants to take her medal with here wherever she goes. We’ve kept copies of all the papers and magazines she was in and we often sit down with her to look at the photos.

“She says: ‘That’s me.’ We ask her if she knows how lucky she is, because not everyone gets to go to Lapland and she had a big smile on her face and said: ‘I know, daddy’.”

It cost the charity about £80,000 to take all the children to Lapland, all of which came from donations.

Natalie and Robert thanked the organisation, and urged anyone interested in donating to visit its website at whenyouwishuponastar.org.uk

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Toddler Rosalia is an inspiration

DISCOVERING you have cancer is devastating, but when it happens to your offspring it’s little short of earth-shattering. Just ask Robert and Natalie Daly-Maxwell, whose toddler Rosalia was diagnosed with a tumour the size of an apple.

But little Rosalia doesn’t know what giving up means and underwent months of chemotherapy and a major operation to remove the tumour.

Now, aged three, it looks as though she has won. The operation was a success, and although Rosalia will need tests for the rest of her life, the most recent results show she is still all clear.

After all that bravery, staff at Leeds General Infirmary decided Rosalia needed a treat so they arranged for her to meet Father Christmas. But not at the local supermarket, she went on a special trip to Lapland organised by the charity When You Wish Upon A Star, Rosalia’s dad went with her to be on the safe side and, on a magical trip; she met Santa, visited an enchanted forest, and stroked a real-life reindeer.

How brilliant. We are also delighted to hear that Rosalia has started pre-school and is making lots of new friends, including her baby sister Emily.

Not to mention that reindeer in Lapland.

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