Retinoblastoma symptoms seen in the eye: Toddler battles cancer

The subtle sign in his eye led to a devastating diagnosis.

When a young Aussie mum noticed one of her toddler’s eyes looked different, she initially believed that her little boy’s iris was changing colour.

It’s not unusual for young children to undergo this change and 31-year-old Kim Vo said the difference in her son Chase was “so subtle”.

But she looked closer and Vo and her husband Ryan Lim, 30, noticed something.

Little Chase’s left pupil was covered by a white cloudy blur - and they knew they had to act.

The parents took their son to eye experts before being told that he has suffered a detached retina.

Vo told 9 News that she and her husband were “confused and devastated”, especially after being told it likely stemmed from an injury.

“Knowing our child could have gone completely blind, how could this have happened?” she said.

Told that sight in the eye could never be restored, the parents faced a heartbreaking decision. If left untreated, the unhealthy eye could cause other complications - but the only option was removal.

They decided to proceed with the operation but as Chase recovered, the young family was rocked by the devastating news that the cause of Chase’s eye issues was a rare cancer - and it had already spread.

Chase was diagnosed with retinoblastoma, an extremely rare childhood cancer.

Even more rare than that, Chase was also found to be the carrier for a gene that would mean any of his children would face a 50 per cent chance of developing the same cancer - and he was at risk himself of developing tumours in his healthy eye.

Chase's parents noticed that his left eye appeared cloudy.

“I feel like every step we took we got another stage of bad news,” Vo told 9 News.

“It felt like something was ripped out of my body. My heart sank.”

Chase went straight into chemotherapy in Melbourne, but the family have opted to up sticks and shift to the US so that their boy can have treatment not available in Australia.

From early next month, Chase will undergo targeted proton radiation treatment at a clinic in Florida, allowing radiotherapists to target the cancer around delicate areas of his growing brain.

“I so badly would trade places with him,” Vo said, noting that Chase is dealing well with his treatment so far.

“Chase is such a playful, happy boy, he’s such a sweet kid,” she said.

His father Ryan said his son has been “the bravest” and is still smiling.

Chase's dad said his boy is "the bravest". Photo / GoFundMe

Australia’s Medical Treatment Overseas Program with pay for some of the costs of getting to the US, but the family face a battle to pray for the treatment itself and have launched a GoFundMe to help get Chase the help he needs.

Funds have already started flowing and Chase’s mum Kim Vo said the “overwhelming love and support... is immensely cherished.

“To want the best for Chase is an innate responsibility borne by his parents. However, to also see this responsibility willingly shared by others brings about an immensely heart-warming sentiment to us and gives us a renewed appreciation of the things in life that are often misvalued.

“From the bottom of our hearts, thank you.”