A Weymouth teenager who beat a rare type of leukaemia after taking part in a clinical trial is now the face of a nationwide campaign.

Aleesha-Marie Southam, 17, stars in a poster appeal for Cancer Research UK for Children & Young People that will see her picture on display in hundreds of the charity’s shops this winter, including her local store in Weymouth.

Photographed reaching a key milestone as she received her GCSE results, the 17-year-old now hopes to become a paediatric nurse.

Aleesha-Marie was 13 when her symptoms first started to appear. Mum Emma Southam thought she may have been anaemic and so booked an appointment with the doctor.

Emma said: “As we waited for her appointment to come around, she also developed a rash so the surgery arranged for a blood test.

“Within hours of having her blood taken, our GP told us we needed to take her to Dorchester hospital immediately.

"They told her dad, Olly and me straight away that she had acute myeloid leukaemia (AML). I felt numb as they told us that we needed to head to the Piam Brown cancer ward in Southampton that evening.

“They didn’t want us to tell Aleesha-Marie until we got there, but as she was 13, we knew as soon as she saw signs for the cancer unit, she would realise what was going on.

“The nurses there were amazing and told us about her treatment plan which is when we were offered the chance to take part in a clinical trial.”

The Myechild trial, part-funded by Cancer Research UK, tested a new combination of chemotherapy given before patients have a stem cell transplant and was for children and young people with leukaemia who have a high risk of the cancer returning after treatment. 

Tests showed Aleesha-Marie's cancer had a high risk of returning without a bone marrow transplant, and so received one as part of her initial treatment.

“We discussed it with Aleesha-Marie and it was very much her choice to be part of it," added Emma.

“Without the trial, she wouldn’t have had her transplant so early and her outcome would have been very different."

Aleesha-Marie also suffers lifelong side effects. A year after the treatment she was declared infertile and she will be on HRT for life.

She developed asthma after a serious chest infection during treatment which put her in intensive care and she suffers from recurring shingles near her eye.

She was unable to return to school until halfway through Year 10, however, she managed to pass her GCSEs, received a provisional driving licence, and receive distinctions at college. She will start university in September.

Emma said: “We are so proud of all she’s achieved and the fact she’s been chosen as the star of this campaign. When I first saw the huge poster of her receiving her exam results and the caption, I burst into tears because you forget how big those moments are and what might not have been, had it not been for her trial.”

Dorset Echo: Ashlee-Marie with the poster at her local branch in WeymouthAshlee-Marie with the poster at her local branch in Weymouth (Image: Cancer Research UK)

Aleesha-Marie said: “I hope that by sharing my story, people will realise what a difference research can make to people like me and will inspire them to support the scientists, doctors and nurses trying to find better treatments.

"I feel fortunate to be looking ahead to my future and to hopefully become a nurse and I want all children who experience cancer to be able to look to the future too.”

Donate in-store at Cancer Research UK shops or online at cruk.org/childrenandyoungpeople