A HEROIC youngster whose story inspired Barnsley residents to generate more than £250,000 to help fund innovative treatment is set to battle cancer again - after it returned for a THIRD time.

Oliver Stephenson, who was diagnosed with high-risk neuroblastoma in early 2020, had a 3cm tumour on his kidney before doctors discovered the cancer had spread to his bone marrow, skull and eye sockets.

However the bivalent vaccine - which is administered in New York - had been a success but the family were dealt another blow when the cancer returned days before Christmas in 2024.

Heartbreakingly, having been given the all-clear for a second time and gone into 2026 with clear scans, a routine urine sample revealed it had returned in the ten-year-old’s bone marrow.

Mum Laura, from Stairfoot - who is also a mum to Oliver’s brother Alfie and his sister Heidi - won the carer of the year category at the Proud of Barnsley awards in 2021.

She said: “His new year scans were clear but the disease was lurking within his bone marrow and this couldn’t be picked up by ultrasound or X-ray.

“It was a simple urine sample that brought the news we didn’t want to hear.

“This is the thing with neuroblastoma: it is silent, it is quick and it is relentless.

“However, Oliver is resilient and strong.

“We are living in a nightmare that refuses to end but the point is that we are living.

“You won’t find us in a heap in the corner, or hiding behind closed doors.

“Of course if we needed to do those things then we know we would be fully supported but the reality is that letting ourselves collapse won’t help Oliver or our other two amazing children.”

The illness first presented on Boxing Day in 2019 when Oliver was aged just four.

He was pale and had darkened eyes, but given the busy time of year it was assumed it was down to tiredness due to the busy Christmas period.

A huge fundraising effort - which totalled £269,741 - saw more than 6,000 people donate before Oliver underwent chemotherapy, radiotherapy and have a bone marrow transplant during his first battle against cancer.

Laura added: “Things that remain the same as before are that we remain positive and hopeful - there’s no other option.

“We want to thank everyone for their kind messages as the well-wishes mean so much to us.”