Four-year-old Nikkita Mills (bottom left) with aunt Christine, dad Adrian and brother Minali at home following her holiday accident in France. Picture: Paul Dennis.

by Adam Williams

awilliams@thekmgroup.co.uk

Brave, smiling Nikkita Mills is still preparing to start her first term at primary school after a dramatic few weeks.

Now safely back home with her family in Tonford Lane, Thanington with father Adrian, 43, auntie Christine, 51 and older brother Minali, aged six, things were very different for Nikkita just three weeks ago.

A fall from her bike during a family holiday, where the handlebars punctured her stomach between the ribs and hip, left her with heavy internal bleeding.

But, CT scans detected a tumour on her kidney, a rare form of child cancer called a Wilms’ Tumour.

Adrian, a self-employed roofer, admits the experience was traumatic.

He said: "At first, I was absolutely devastated. Not only had my daughter had a terrible accident, doctors had found a more serious problem at the same time.

"But, now I’ve found out more about the treatment, I’m confident she’s in the right hands and getting the care she needs.

"The day before we were due to come home, Nikkita had her accident at a campsite near Sézanne. She’d been trying to turn a sharp bend when she fell on top of the handlebars.

"Had it not been for the accident and her injuries, the tumour could’ve gone undiscovered for ages.

"Now we’re back home, she’s recovered from the initial accident and has just started chemotherapy at the Royal Marsden Children’s Hospital in Surrey, where she’ll go once a week.

“The school have also been great allowing her to start term a bit later.”

Nikkita will now undergo five weeks of chemotherapy before an operation next month to remove the tumour and her right kidney.

Doctors don’t believe the tumour has spread to any of her other organs and are expected to put Nikkita on another 27 weeks of chemotherapy where it’s hoped she will make a full recovery.

Read more on Nikkita's recovery in this week's Kentish Gazette, out Thursday.