When two-year-old Ashton finished his treatment it was time to celebrate. “Are you going to ring the bell?” asked his mother, Tichra. “Yeah!” he replied. Sometimes the loud clanging surprises patients but Ashton pulled the rope enthusiastically on Friday 20 December, enjoying the moment and sporting a confident smile.

Ashton was diagnosed with pelvic cancer when he was seven-months-old and had chemotherapy once a week to treat it.

There were some scary times such as when he first got his central line. “He was just agitated and couldn’t get comfortable,” remembers Tichra.

When Ashton was recently given the ‘all-clear’ two months ago his family was relieved. “It’s a load off our shoulders,” said Tichra.

“We can live a normal life and do normal things like go to a play centre. We couldn’t do anything before because of his immune system.”

His family had been hoping for Ashton to be well again for so long it was almost hard to believe the day had arrived to celebrate it in the Oncology clinic. Worry has been replaced by looking forward to Ashton having fun with his family and other children. They had as much to smile about as Ashton as he rang the bell.