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A brave schoolgirl who was diagnosed with cancer after developing a limp can finally be a bridesmaid at her parents wedding after being told she’s in remission.

The parents of Freya Williams, from Solihull, had to cancel their wedding in Thailand in April 2014 after their daughter was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia.

Mum Jade Bartlett had noticed her daughter was limping as she walked, and after several trips to the GP she was given painkillers.

But when she later came out in a disturbing purple rash, Jade, who works as a nurse, became concerned it could be leukaemia.

After a visit to the GP she was referred to Heartlands Hospital for blood tests, which revealed her white blood count was dangerously low.

Doctors told parents Sean, 32, and Jade, 31, that they were astounded their little girl could still stand up beause she was so ill.

The painkillers had been masking her symptoms and her parents were told it was almost certain to be leukaemia.

Jade said: “Sean was particularly devastated as his dad died of cancer when Sean was 18.

“Even though I had suspected cancer I was still in total shock.

“We were transferred to Birmingham Children’s Hospital and everything became a whirlwind.

“She had bone marrow tests and blood transfusions.

“Within a day she was starting chemotherapy.”

Freya, now a pupil at St Augustine’s Catholic Primary School, began 11 months of intensive chemotherapy followed by 18 months of maintenance chemotherapy.

Meanwhile ,her parents put their Thai wedding on the back-burner, as they stayed by their daughter’s bedside in hospital.

To make matters worse, Freya caught chicken pox while having treatment and spent most of last summer in hospital.

“It was an incredibly difficult time,” added Jade.

“It became the norm that Freya couldn’t do anything.

“She couldn’t go to playgroup or nursery, we couldn’t visit play areas in case she got an infection, we couldn’t go on holiday.

“We couldn’t plan anything at all because we didn’t know if she would be well.”

Little sister Heidi was born in October 2015, giving the family a much needed boost.

And in February 2016 Freya was finally declared to be in remission.

Now she has been given a Cancer Research UK Star Award for her bravery, after battling months of intensive treatment with a smile.

Jade said: “It was amazing to reach that point after such a long haul.

“Life has become a lot easier and it is wonderful to see Freya blossoming into a little girl with a normal life - full of dolls and princesses and colouring.

“We would have loved to get married this year but didn’t dare ‘jinx’ anything by booking it.

“So we’ve fixed a date of August 2017 for our wedding in Spain.”

Cancer Research UK’s Kids & Teens Star Awards are open to all under-18s who have cancer or who have been treated for the disease in the last five years.

The awards, which celebrate the courage of children affected by cancer, are backed by a host of famous faces including Olympic long jumper and medallist Greg Rutherford, professional dancers Karen and Kevin Clifton and television personality Sam Faiers.

To nominate a child for an award, donate or fundraise in support of Cancer Research UK Kids & Teens, visit cruk.org/kidsandteens .