A cheeky, giggly and affectionate girl, Chloe is full of beans and loves dancing, playing dress-ups, sports and making cubbies.

She is also very resilient and determined.

Chloe was almost three, when she started complaining of tummy aches and wasn’t sleeping well. Not long after, she was diagnosed with Wilms tumour, a kidney cancer found in children. The diagnosis was a huge shock to the family and within days, Chloe and her family were thrust into the hospital environment.

Treatment began with gruelling rounds of chemotherapy and after five weeks, Chloe had surgery to remove the tumour and her left kidney. The surgery was complicated, with Chloe needing to spend time in intensive care.

Unfortunately, the post-surgery pathology didn't hold the news the family had been hoping for with Chloe now needing a further 34 weeks of intensive chemotherapy.

"As a parent, your heart physically hurts for so long, it really is your worst nightmare," said Chloe's mum Rosie.

"Being so young, Chloe was unable to comprehend what was going on and why. Being away from family for such long periods of time has also been extremely hard for Chloe, with the pandemic only adding another layer of complexity."

For the family, it's been a struggle making big life decisions in a short period of time and juggling Chloe's needs and treatments, alongside work and looking after Chloe's sisters Lucinda and Matilda.

"Every facet of our lives changed at Chloe’s diagnosis, and we continue to be in a strange state of existing, rather than living. Moments that usually brought joy for the family, were put on ice," said Rosie.

Amidst the relentless cycle of treatment and procedures, positivity and laughter has been an essential part of Chloe's experience in hospital with Captain Starlight and the Starlight Express Room coming to the rescue.

While the family has always been long-time supporters of Starlight, they only had first-hand experience of the impact Starlight makes on sick kids and their families once Chloe was there.

"Starlight has always provided a welcome sanctuary for Chloe where she can spend hours, upon hours doing craft, puzzles, painting, blowing bubbles or her favourite past time, chasing Captain Starlight!" said Chloe's dad Chris.

"We truly cannot imagine our hospital experience without Starlight - I'm not sure Chloe could face hospital without the enticement of the Starlight Express Room," he continued.

"Starlight provides us all with something to look forward to, a place where we can simply have fun and find respite and relief from the clinical world. Captain Starlight always remembers Chloe's name and interests which makes her feel super special, like she's the only kid in the world."

To the donors and supporters of Starlight, Rosie and Chris say, "You can never truly understand the impact Starlight has until you have a child who needs it, and you can see the pure joy and happiness it brings. Starlight truly is the best medicine of all."