An Arkansas toddler with no symptoms other than swelling around her eye was diagnosed with retinal cancer and needed eye removal surgery as treatment.
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Josh Morss grew concerned when he noticed swelling around his 1-year-old daughter Lily’s eye. Acting quickly, he and his wife decided to take their toddler to the hospital for evaluation.
“They did a CT scan on her; they said there was something in her eye,” Morss recalled to local outlet KAIT-8.
He explained it was a tumor—retinoblastoma, a type of cancer affecting her right eye. According to the Cleveland Clinic, this condition occurs when eye cells grow and multiply uncontrollably. Retinoblastoma is a rare cancer, but it’s the most common eye cancer in children. About 25 percent of cases affect both eyes.
In Lily’s situation, the cancer in her right eye had advanced to her left eye, requiring urgent surgery to remove her right eye, scheduled for Dec. 20.
“I cried, [Lily’s mother Casie] cried. Our little girl’s going through something unimaginable,” he told the outlet.
“She’s showing us the courage that we need,” Josh said of his daughter. “That we need to have,” Casie added.
The Morss Family Set Up a GoFundMe as Lily Continues Cancer Treatment
The family has been staying at St. Jude’s Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, over an hour away from their home in Arkansas. To support themselves during this challenging time, they have created a GoFundMe. Both parents have taken time off work to remain by Lily’s side as she undergoes treatment, which includes six rounds of chemotherapy.
At the time of writing, they have surpassed their $16K goal, raising over $18K.
According to the Cleveland Clinic, the earliest sign of retinoblastoma often appears in photographs, where the pupil reflects white when exposed to flash photography. Additional symptoms may include eyes that fail to track movement, misaligned or protruding eyes, as well as swelling and inflammation—symptoms similar to what Lily experienced.
Retinoblastoma often occurs before children can talk, but they may show signs of pain by having trouble sleeping or being fussy, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
Of course, the prognosis is more favorable before the cancer spreads. However, Lily’s family remains hopeful about her chances.
“We are one step closer to making our little girl’s life better… one step closer, but a very long road [lies] ahead of us,” they wrote on GoFundMe. In an update yesterday, the family also wrote that “Lily has been doing good with her chemo.”