A MARCHAM mum has shared her family’s battle with a rare and aggressive form of eye cancer.

Corina Goodale, along with her daughters Isabella, five, and Michaella Goodale, almost two, have all suffered from Retinoblastoma (Rb), which affects babies and children under six.

In 1983, when she was 14 months old and living in Moldova, Mrs Goodale was diagnosed with Rb in both eyes after an ophthalmologist friend of the family noticed a 'white glow' – a common symptom.

Although chemotherapy, radiotherapy and laser treatment saved her life, she lost all vision in her right eye and was left with 30 per cent sight in her left.

Mrs Goodale, who is registered blind, said: “I was the first child in the Soviet Union to be treated and reach remission with both eyes in place. The approach was very different 34 years ago compared to what it is today.”

Although she and her husband Darran, who now live in Marcham, were overjoyed in 2013 to discover they were to become parents, she knew there was a 50 per cent chance their daughter Isabella could have Rb.

She said: “Unlike my experience, where nobody knew where the Rb had come from and it wasn’t diagnosed until I was older, there were screening processes in place by the time Isabella was born and Darran and I were armed with information.”

Unfortunately, Isabella was diagnosed with Rb in both eyes, just like her mum, at just 10 weeks old.

But, as the cancer was caught so early, laser treatment was successful and she avoided needing chemotherapy, managing to retain the vision in both of her eyes. As of 2013, Isabella is officially in remission.

In summer 2016, Isabella became a proud big sister to Michaella, who was also screened at birth for the Rb gene. Within a month, she too was diagnosed with the condition.

Mrs Goodale said: “Michaella has also responded well to the same laser treatment that Isabella received and as of last October, she has joined her big sister in remission.”

The youngsters are now ambassadors of the Childhood Eye Cancer Trust (CHECT) and recently opened a new ‘Vision Express at Tesco’ store in Abingdon.

The optician was the first in the UK to roll out a protocol to ensure a quick referral if Rb is suspected.