'She has this love for the hospital. She's not afraid now.' Meet Jennah
6 May 2025, 10:39 a.m.
Jennah was treated at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) after being diagnosed with a brain tumour when she was just five years old. Now seven, she’s back at school full time, and loves dancing, sleepovers and riding her scooter.
‘GOSH was only something I'd seen in adverts’
Jennah’s symptoms began the day after her fifth birthday. For months, her parents, Rubeka and Andrew, searched for answers, until an optician noticed pressure behind her eyes.
An MRI scan revealed that Jennah had a tumour on the back of her brain, and she was transferred to GOSH for groundbreaking surgery.
“GOSH was only something I’d seen in adverts,” Rubeka says. “I'd donate to Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity (GOSH Charity) randomly, but it was so far away from my life.
“At that moment, our world shattered. We’d gone from thinking about Christmas presents and school runs to emergency surgery. It was really frightening, but we knew that it was going to be lifesaving treatment.”
Brain surgery at GOSH
Rubeka and Andrew spent a tense 10 hours waiting for the operation to be over.
"We knew that she was having surgery, having the MRI, then going back for surgery. This was all in the same room,” Rubeka says.
“I had never heard of anything like that before. It's such intrusive surgery and to have equipment like the iMRI to aid and support the operation was amazing.”
The operation was a success, and when Jennah woke up, she surprised everyone with how lively she was.
“She was even arguing with me!” Rubeka says. “I was ecstatic. We had no idea how she’d be after the surgery, so this was a miracle.”
‘They played away her fear’
Jennah began chemotherapy two weeks after the surgery. Her family relied on the GOSH Charity-funded Play team to help make their time in hospital a little easier.
“It was incredible,” Rubeka says. “The team helped Jennah understand what was going to happen and why, using dolls, books and even slime. They played away all her fear.”
On the day Jennah had surgery to insert a Hickman line, a Play specialist talked her through the procedure.
“Jennah hated cannulas, so a good way to convince her was telling her she wouldn’t need any more needles after this,” Rubeka says. “Claire, the specialist, blew bubbles and helped to put Jennah to sleep.
“At GOSH, the playroom is the best access to childhood. It provides a glimmer of hope and a space for children to just be children.”
Ringing the end-of-treatment bell
Jennah had 30 sessions of radiotherapy, and she was put to sleep every day for each session.
In April 2024, she began another round of chemotherapy. As a side effect of her treatment, she now requires hearing aids and has her hearing checked every six weeks.
“It is such a hard thing for children to go through,” Rubeka says. “But Jennah's comfortable at GOSH now. She even asks to go back.
“The support has been amazing, and we’ve had help with everything, from financial advice to emotional support. We’re in the best hands.”
In February 2025, Jennah rang the end-of-treatment bell. Now, she goes back to GOSH every three months for an MRI scan.
Today she's walking without a walker, riding her scooter again, and recently joined an after-school dance club.
“She can’t wait to jump into a pool without her wigglies [Hickman line],” Rubeka says. “She loves swimming, playing pranks, and having sleepovers with her sister.
“Her school friends seem really grown up compared to her now. She’s a baby, but they really look after her."
A new Children’s Cancer Centre
The new Children’s Cancer Centre at GOSH will help give more children like Jennah the best chance and the best childhood possible.
It will be a place where kids have access to play and education alongside pioneering treatments. Where families can stay together through some of the hardest moments. Where access to outdoor space is a priority, and a focus on nutrition helps fuel recovery.
“We go all over the hospital for lots of appointments, so having a place where everything is together will be great,” Rubeka says.
“Jennah couldn’t leave her room much, and when her siblings visited, there was no space to play. More outdoor space would be amazing – our skin got so dry from being inside all the time.
“Jennah missed so many breakfasts, lunches and dinners because she wasn’t ready to eat. We often had to go out and buy hot meals. Having nutritious food available 24 hours would make such a difference.”
No childhood should be cut short by cancer.
Join us to build the new Children’s Cancer Centre at GOSH and help beat cancer for more children.
