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Cancer returns in third bout for Penticton’s Wills

The 10-year-old’s three-year battle with cancer continues as he returns to B.C. Children’s Hospital
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Wills Hodgkinson, 9, relaxes on the front porch of his Naramata home after being allowed a break in his cancer treatment in Vancouver. (Mark Brett - Western News)

After five months, Wills Hodgkinson’s cancer is back and worse than before.

The 10-year-old is back in Vancouver at B.C. Children’s Hospital for more treatment after a scan in January revealed the cancer in his lungs had regrown.

Wills was diagnosed with a Wilms’ tumour in 2018, a rare kidney cancer that primarily affects children.

After the tumour and his left kidney were removed, and undergoing chemotherapy, Wills was declared cancer-free in 2018 before relapsing a year later.

READ MORE: Brief respite for Wills in cancer battle

Scans in July and October had shown promising signs that the cancer had seemed to have stopped spreading, with doctors waiting to see whether they would need to go forward with surgery.

The most recent scans showed the main tumour had quadrupled in size, and four additional tumours had appeared in his lungs.

The plan is to do chemotherapy, followed by a stem cell transplant and lobectomy on his lung.

That surgery would remove 60 per cent of Will’s left lung.

An online fundraiser for Wills’ family has been set up on GoFundMe.

To report a typo, email: editor@pentictonwesternnews.com.

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Brennan Phillips

About the Author: Brennan Phillips

Brennan was raised in the Okanagan and is thankful every day that he gets to live and work in one of the most beautiful places in Canada.
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