Cancer charity awards brave Ben a Little Star

10:37am Sunday 24th December 2006

By Emily-Ann Elliott

BRAVE Ben Daniell got the star treatment when he was presented with a special award from a cancer charity.

Three-year-old Ben received the Cancer Research UK Little Star award after battling adrenal cancer, a rare form of the disease which affects only one in a million people every year.

The awards, which are sponsored by Cineworld Cinemas, seek to reward the courage of individual children from across the UK, while promoting greater awareness of children's cancers.

Ben, of Tintern Close, Popley, Basingstoke, travelled to Cineworld Cinema in Southampton with two friends and his brother Rhys, six, who presented him with his award.

As well as a trophy, Ben received a certificate signed by a host of celebrities, including Kylie Minogue and footballer Ashley Cole.

He was also given an Arsenal football kit by Cancer Research UK, and a family cinema ticket and goody bag from Cineworld.

Ben, who goes to Timbers Nursery School in Oakridge, said: "We saw the film Flushed Away and I got a star award. It was fun."

Ben's dad, Ian, 33, who nominated him for the award, said: "We all had a really good day. Ben was so excited to get the award.

"Rhys was the best person to present it to him and acknowledge his bravery. They are incredibly close and always look after each other."

Ben was diagnosed with adrenal cancer in December 2004 when he was just 18 months old. He had a five-centimetre tumour on one of his adrenal glands, which had to be removed from near his heart during an eight-hour operation at Southampton General Hospital.

Explaining how he and his wife Julie felt at the time, Mr Daniell said: "When we saw Ben lying in hospital, he looked so helpless with loads of tubes coming out of him. We felt helpless as well.

"However, two days later he was up playing football in the ward corridor. You would never know there was anything wrong if you did not see the scar which went from one side of his body to the other."

Ben now takes steroids to replace the growth hormones produced by the gland. He returns to Southampton General Hospital every two months for blood tests and every six months to see a specialist.

Mr Daniell said: "Ben is amazing. He has faced everything that has happened to him, mainly with smiles. He still has to have drugs three times a day and we break them up in a drink for him to take."

Mrs Daniell, 27, added: "Ben's doing really well at the moment. He loves nursery and has lots of friends there. He's also a real outdoor boy and likes going out on his bike, playing football and skateboarding."

In May, Ben, his dad and brother all took part in the Alberto Culver Run4Fun in Basingstoke, which raises vital funds for Cancer Research UK. The family is now hoping that Ben will receive the all-clear in March 2007.

Helen Johnstone, from Cancer Research UK, said: "Ben's story is an inspiration to others. He has had to face more in his young life than many people face in a lifetime.

"He is an amazing boy and his parents have every reason to feel very proud of him."