In March 2023, when Betsy was five, she was diagnosed with leukaemia.
Her mum, Charlotte Smith is a physiotherapist in the NHS and lives in Bridgend with her partner Christian Williams, who trains horses, and their daughters Tilly, nine, and Betsy, who is seven.Her maintenance chemotherapy is due to finish in May 2025. Friends and family, including the horse racing community, have raised around £100,000 for Latch in Betsy’s name which has helped to create happy memories during a very difficult time.
“‘My mummy and daddy can stay in the rooms above the ward, and my sister can come and stay.’”
That’s what Betsy said about when she did an interview about Latch. Their presence on the oncology ward of the Children’s Hospital in Cardiff makes them unique. It’s important to Besty that we can stay nearby in the Home from Home accommodation and the fact that Latch are on the ward makes it easier to ask for help. I would never ring Latch and say: ‘I'm struggling.’ But because you can walk upstairs from the oncology ward to their offices, it’s easier.
The fundraising our friends and family have done for LATCH has completely changed the narrative of the past two years for us. It hasn't all been doom and gloom. We've got really lovely memories of people doing lovely things for us. It’s made Betsy feel like a celebrity and she loves the fuss.
Getting diagnosed
It felt like Betsy was never ill before the leukaemia. But I started to take her to the GP about three months before was diagnosed because she wasn’t right. She was flat, fatigued, and not wanting to do all the clubs she loved, like gymnastics. Her temperatures kept spiking with no real cause and then the pain started. She started getting limb pain and was profusely sweating in the night.
As a physiotherapist with some medical background, alarm bells were going for me. The GP thought it was viral but my gut was telling me it was something sinister. I thought she had leukaemia and asked for blood tests.
The day after Betsy had the blood tests, someone from our local hospital, the Princess of Wales, called and asked us to go in. When the doctor told me that Betsy had leukaemia I couldn't move. I was holding on to the bed, completely shocked. I thought: ‘I can't believe this is happening to us.’
Christian was away at Cheltenham Festival, a big horse race, that day so I was on my own until he got to the hospital in the evening. I can’t remember the conversation we had when I told him.
Latch Social Worker
Our Latch Social Worker, was one of the first people I met when I had been told that Betsy had leukaemia so I was very raw. That day, she took me upstairs to the Home from Home accommodation, which is more relaxed and has a living room. I don’t know if she knows how much that helped me. Just the hospitality and the fact that she sat with me for an hour to tell me about all the things Latch could help with.
They told us that the chemotherapy they wanted to give her had a 90% success rate. It started straight away which was reassuring. But at the same time, you didn't get time to stop and think. We were in hospital for 10 days and then discharged to give Betsy oral chemotherapy at home. The first six weeks were the most intense with us being at the hospital for three to four days a week. Over the first six months, some days she’d have three different types of chemotherapy in one day. We’d be back in hospital if Betsy spiked a temperature.
Latch equipment
The equipment that LATCH have funded has helped Besty. It’s equipment that the NHS might not be able to afford to pay for. Like the drip stands and the LATCHmosphere which projects light and sound when a child is having an MRI scan. It was a really good distraction and helped calm her down.
Home from Home accommodation
The Latch Home from Home accommodation has been an absolute godsend for us. I’ve used the kitchen to make myself something to eat when I’ve been in hospital with Betsy on my own and needed something to eat. I have tag teamed with Christan and gone up to the accommodation, sharing keeping Besty entertained with having a break. It’s just upstairs, which reduces a lot of your anxieties and gives you that little bit of time away.
Tilly, Besty’s sister, has stayed there as well, which has made her feel part of the journey. She was feeling very out of it in the early days, as Christian and I were back and forth to the hospital. She would get quite excited to have a sleep over there.
Support for siblings
Latch made a referral for both Tilly and Betsy to have play therapy which has been a massive help. They had some sessions together but mostly it’s separate. The girls struggle to talk about all of this but they open up to someone else.
Tilly went on the Latch sibling day to learn to surf. There was also a family day out in the summer holidays to Heatherton World of Activities in West Wales. Everyone from the hospital went on the bus and we had the best day. It was lovely to do something normal and see the kids enjoying themselves and laughing.
We’ve been fortunate not to need the financial support that Latch offer but I have seen other families benefit from it. I’ve seen how they have helped people make repairs to their house to make it safe, for example.
Fundraising for Latch
The person who runs Chepstow racecourse, Phil Bell, organised a charity race for Latch in Betsy’s name. Then, our friend, John Fox Davies, a Welsh rugby player, has dedicated £40,000 raised from his testimonial year to Latch and gone on to become a Patron for the Charity. Betsy’s dance teacher has raised lots of money for Latch and her school has too. They did a 10k run and a Christmas concert.
Staff who work for our horse training business have organised two big rounders matches which raised around £62,000. Professional jockeys came and made up rounders teams. It's such a lovely community of people and they've been so generous.
How Betsy is doing
Betsy has formed a forever friendship with another girl from her school. Lacie is five and has the same diagnosis. Every Tuesday, they have their bloods done together at school. Betsy picks Lacie up from class and they hold hands and walk down to the office where a nurse does their bloods. Betsy says she has to be brave because Lacie’s younger than her. Lacie’s mum, Jess, and I are part of a group of five parents. We’re mums with children who were diagnosed around the same time and have become really good friends.
I couldn’t imagine what our journey would have looked like if we hadn’t had Latch to support us. Having them around during the most difficult days of our lives brought us so much comfort. Even those times the team popped their heads around the door while we were on the ward to say hi made such a difference. I could never thank them enough.
Looking ahead
Life will never be the same again for us. This has put things in perspective because there is literally nothing more important than your family being happy and healthy.
It's a little bit scary for parents to think about what the future holds. I try to stay positive.
I hope Latch keep growing in the way that they are so that people can see what a fabulous charity they are and how they support families like ours.”
