One year old Zaylee Cambridge battles aggressive cancer after neuroblastoma diagnosis at John Hunter Children's Hospital

Instead, the Cameron Park mother has been living the inescapable nightmare of watching her youngest child begin her second round of chemotherapy in a little more than a fortnight.

Five days before Zaylee was diagnosed with neuroblastoma - a rare type of cancerous tumour that almost always affects children - she was smiling, giggling, and sipping a "babycino" while celebrating her mum's birthday.

But her world suddenly shrunk to the size of the John Hunter Children's Hospital oncology ward after doctors discovered a "large mass" near her right kidney.

"She had just been a bit irritable," Ms Downie said.

"It kind of seemed like teething symptoms - she'd had a big, bulging gum, and I thought that her tooth might have needed to come through.

"Then she started to become more irritable. But she didn't have any other symptoms. No high temperatures. We started giving her some Panadol and Nurofen... Nurofen seemed to be the only thing that was kind of settling her down."

Ms Downie said Zaylee was still eating, but became lethargic. Every few days, she vomited.

"A doctor came and had a look at her on the Saturday. He checked her ears, her throat, and listened to her heart. And he said he couldn't see anything."

When Zaylee didn't improve, Ms Downie took her to the hospital.

Again, doctors examined Zaylee, but could not find any obvious signs of illness.

"The doctor said to probably just lay off the Panadol and Nurofen, because it might be affecting her, and said if she's no better in a week, to take her to the GP," Ms Downie said. "I couldn't have waited a week. Three days later, on the Wednesday, I took her to my GP."

Apart from a low grade fever, he found "nothing".

"But he kept looking at her, and agreed that she just wasn't herself."

He recommended Ms Downie go to the hospital again, for further testing.

A urine test came back "clear", but a blood test showed "inflammation" in her body. Ms Downie said the hospital's medical team sent Zaylee for an ultrasound to "be on the safe side".

"They noticed her appendix were up really high. I thought, yep, appendicitis - I can deal with that," she said.

"He then started scanning her kidneys, and he just kept going back to the right kidney. I knew something wasn't right.

"That's when they told us they had found a large mass on the top of her kidney. It was nine-by-seven centimetres, and it was pushing her organs up.

"From there we were admitted and it has just been a whirlwind. It has turned our lives upside down.

"We were just like, 'Why? Why her, why not us?' We have lived a little at least, but she is only just getting started.

"We were angry. We were upset. There were so many emotions."

Ms Downie said testing and biopsies had revealed the neuroblastoma had started in the adrenal gland of Zaylee's right kidney. She said it was aggressive, and fast-growing.

"It has also attached itself to her liver, and there are signs of it in her bones," she said. "It felt like forever that we were waiting to find out what this was, but as soon as they worked it out, they started treatment straight away.

"They've classed her in the high risk category, but we won't know any more until we get the results of further tests.

"Every night you go to sleep and you think you're going to wake up and this was all just a nightmare.

"But no, it's real, and it is just heartbreaking. They'll do some more tests again soon. There is a possibility that she could have an operation. There is a possibility that she could lose a kidney. There's a possibility that she may need bone marrow, as well."

A friend of the family set up a Go Fund Me campaign, called Zaylee's cancer fight, which had raised almost $6000 in two weeks.

"We've always been the type of people who don't like to ask for help, we always stand on our own two feet," a grateful Ms Downie said. "But the support has been mind-blowing.

"Everyone was sending lovely messages, asking whether there was anything they could do for us. And in the beginning, our answer was just - 'Take it away from her, that's all we want'.

"But unfortunately, it is what it is, and we have a battle on our hands."

Ms Downie, who has four older children, has stopped working to be by Zaylee's side.

"She is a little fighter. But we are all a mess," she said.

"We try to keep her room really positive, and as normal as we can. If we need to break down, we leave. We've got a lot of her toys here, and her blanket with her name on it so that it feels a little more homely.

"How can your child go from smiling and drinking babycinos, to being in a hospital bed, undergoing chemo, so quickly?

"You just can't believe that it could happen to your child.

"I was kind of expecting to be told to go to the dentist to get her gum cut, or, have them say 'Here's some antibiotics'. But, no.

"I can't think too far ahead. It's just one day at a time. That's all you can focus on, that's all you can hold onto."

Ms Downie said she was glad she had been persistent.

"I could have been sent away again, and this could have ended much worse than what it is now," she said.

"If you know something is wrong with your child, don't give up."

You can donate here to support the family.

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