Isabella beat cancer after drugs trials

And they are now backing a national Cancer Research UK campaign highlighting the importance of the trials.

Isabella Lyttle, from Shelfield, Walsall, took part in an immunotherapy trial to help her fight a rare type of cancer known as neuroblastoma when she was just three.

Isabella's parents, Mark and Jennie, want people to see clinical trials as a normal and essential part of research and treatment for cancer.

The trials show whether new tests and treatments are safe, what their side-effects are and whether they are better than what is currently used.

Mark said: "We know from personal experience that clinical trials are vital, both to people like Isabella who received treatment and to future generations.

"Today, more and more people are surviving thanks to research, and cancer trials are crucial in helping to develop better and kinder treatments."

Isabella, a pupil at St Francis Catholic Primary School in Shelfield, was diagnosed with cancer in October 2010 after complaining of a pain in her hip.

Her doctor immediately referred her to Walsall Manor Hospital where an MRI scan was carried out, which resulted in her being transferred to Birmingham Children's Hospital.

After tests confirmed that Isabella had cancer, she underwent nine hours of surgery to remove a tumour, followed by a stem cell transplant and chemotherapy.

She also had radiotherapy before being invited to take part in an immunotherapy clinical trial at the children's hospital, which included an antibody drug to boost her immune response against the cancer.

Mark, 38, who works for the Keyring charity in Walsall which supports vulnerable adults, said: "We were told that Isabella only had a 40 per cent chance of survival but, with the help of this clinical trial, she has now been clear of cancer for nearly three years.

"Isabella has been truly amazing during two years of going through all kinds of cancer treatment to save her life.

"She coped so well with everything that was thrown at her and took it all in her stride. Quite often it was only the fact that her hair had fallen out that you could tell she was ill.

"It has been quite amazing to watch our daughter grow up during the two years she has had to endure."

Mark added: "The consultant explained it was a tumour wrapped around the main arteries that run from the heart to her legs. For some reason, the pain had manifested itself in her hip, but we were told the cancer had spread over her body."