Girl, 8, has ovarian cancer

An eight-year-old girl was undergoing treatment today for ovarian cancer - a disease which normally affects much older women.

Sophie Fry is having the gruelling treatment for the disease as relatives and supporters launch a fundraising campaign.

She is believed to be one of the youngest girls in the country to be fighting ovarian cancer.

The youngster, from Driffield, East Yorks, was taken to Scarborough Hospital earlier this year with abdominal pains.

Mum Heidi, 33 and Gavin, 32, were later told an ultrasound had revealed their daughter had a tumour.

The youngster has since undergone a major operation at St James's Hospital in Leeds, West Yorks, where she is now undergoing further treatment.

Relatives and supporters launched the fundraising campaign for the hospital unit caring for her and to help pay for a holiday.

Sophie's parents were unable to comment about their daughter today.

Professor Hani Gabra, director of the Ovarian Cancer Action Research Centre, said: "Cancers found in the ovaries of young children, called ovarian germ cell tumours, are a quite distinct disease from adult ovarian cancer, which most commonly affects women aged 50 and over.

"Germ cell tumours in children are thankfully rare and treatment is usually effective, with more than four out of five children who develop the disease surviving.

"Nonetheless, this will naturally be an extremely worrying time for the child affected and their family, and our thoughts are with them.

"Very little is currently understood about the causes of ovarian cancer, which is why more investment in researching the disease is vital."

In March, Paige Brown became the youngest girl in the UK to beat ovarian cancer.

She was only nine when she was diagnosed with the disease. She is now leading a normal life.

Taken from the Belfast Telegraph