The parents of an 11-year-old girl whose rare cancer has returned for a third time say they have been left “devastated”.

A scan earlier this month revealed Maya Nash’s neuroblastoma was back - just months after being told she was in remission.

Aged just three, the Hythe resident was diagnosed with stage four high-risk neuroblastoma, which develops in early nerve cells and often starts in the abdomen.

She subsequently received frontline treatment in a trial on the NHS for the disease, which is a rare cancer that affects children mostly under five.

Between 2019 and 2020, after raising £89,000, Maya and her family travelled to New York for a clinical trial at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

They hoped the treatment would stop it from returning and, after that, there was no evidence of active disease.

But the cancer returned again last summer and, despite a period of remission this year, the family was told this month it has been found again.

Mum Dellanie Nash, a nurse, says it is “devastating” but stresses the family is refusing to give up.

“The cancer has returned on her bones; she has one big spot on the right and two faint ones on the left,” she said.

“She had no symptoms at the time of her scan so we were trying to be positive going into it.

“Maya is now having two rounds of chemotherapy before her next scan. The doctors are hoping the chemo leaves one faint spot so that she can then be eligible for a clinical trial.

“The problem is if she goes back into remission she won't be eligible.

"The trial is our only hope to stop the cancer from returning a fourth time. We are clutching at straws.”

Mrs Nash, 48, says Maya has an “incredible fighting spirit” and will not be bogged down by statistics.

But she admits Maya’s chances of survival are decreasing each time the cancer returns.

“It's a really, really bad prognosis but I can't dwell on that negative energy," she said.

“We're grateful that she's still with us. At the end of the day, they are only statistics.

“Neuroblastoma is really, really hard to treat but Maya is still fighting.”

According to Cancer Research UK, symptoms of neuroblastoma include numbness, weakness, loss of movement in the lower part of the body, breathlessness and difficulty swallowing.

The survival rate for relapsed neuroblastoma is about 10%.

If the latest round of chemotherapy is successful, Maya could be eligible for a clinical trial in Southampton, Great Ormond Street or New York.

The family set up a GoFundMe page last July so they “don’t have to worry about finances while Maya gets her treatment”.

So far they have raised more than £30,000.

“We want to continue to make as many happy memories with Maya as possible,” she added.

“At the moment we are trying to make her as comfortable as possible and we have become experts at managing her sickness.

“It is an incredibly hard time for us all and I would like to thank everyone for their support.”