Big Brother fan favorite Britney Haynes Godwin has officially confirmed good news in her 4-month-old daughter’s fight against childhood cancer. Baby Tilly was diagnosed with cancer at just 2-months-old and has been receiving regular chemotherapy sessions to fight the disease. This past weekend, Britney announced that Tilly would not have to undergo further surgery at this time, is finished with her last round of anticipated chemo, and will now be moving into the “monitoring phase” of her treatment plan.
We reported the news that Tilly was in remission last week based on a tweet by former Big Brother HouseGuest Shane Meaney saying that doctors believe Tilly’s “cancer is now all gone.” Shane also said that Tilly did not have to undergo planned surgery at St. Jude Children’s Hospital, and he had spoken directly to Britney before he tweeted the good news. However, Britney herself later tweeted that this information was “inaccurate.”
In response to the rumors and reports circulating about the state of baby Tilly’s health, Britney Haynes Godwin posted a lengthy update on TogetherForTilly.com on Friday to clear up any misinformation. In her blog entry, Britney said that doctors did decide not to move forward with surgery to resect baby Tilly’s tumor because it “was ultimately too risky for the potential benefits.” She also stated that Tilly is doing “incredibly well” but still has a long road ahead.
“You don’t go from having cancer to not having cancer overnight,” Britney said. “You don’t get to forget all about it and wake up the next day a totally normal person. At best, you get to be in one of various levels of remission. Don’t get me wrong, we were ecstatic to hear that she wasn’t having surgery and is moving onto the monitoring phase of her protocol, but like anyone who has had cancer or been close to a cancer patient knows, by no means is she done.”
“We have had our last anticipated chemo and everyone is very optimistic about her continued health,” Britney continued. “She faces challenges going forward that stem from the original location of her tumor. I have no doubts, however, that she can overcome it all. We work hard every single day to get as much normalcy back for her as possible. She has shown so much progress and strength; I couldn’t be more proud of her.”
Britney closed out her update on baby Tilly by asking for a prayer and quick recovery for a brave little boy named Brody at St. Jude Children’s hospital who has stage 4 Neuroblastoma. “He has a long road ahead and will need continued support as well,” Britney said. “If you wish, you can ‘like’ his Facebook page and follow his journey here: https://www.facebook.com/BrodysFightAgainstNeuroblastoma I have met some really awesome people through all of this and I consider this family to be among the best.”
Read Britney’s full update and follow baby Tilly’s progress at TogetherForTilly.com.
