Thread by @reuterspictures

.@Reuters photographer @darrinzl documents his daughter Rebecca's cancer fight, worsened by a pandemic that brought paranoia over her compromised immune system, anxiety over supply chains and separation when togetherness was what his family needed most reut.rs/339YTpp 1/9

@Reuters @darrinzl Last year, Rebecca was diagnosed with Ewing's Sarcoma, a rare and extremely aggressive form of bone cancer. Becs, as the family calls her, was suddenly fighting for her life. She would need chemotherapy followed by surgery to replace the bone with a prosthetic in England 2/9

@Reuters @darrinzl Everything changed in March when the coronavirus arrived in Malta, where the family lives. Darrin's wife Marisa called in a panic, saying they were going to impose a lockdown on the ward. People were restricted from coming and going to protect young and vulnerable patients 3/9

@Reuters @darrinzl In April, Darrin finally saw Becs and his wife for the first time in person in over three weeks. He could only see them through the gaps in the hospital's terrace fence, but it was an emotional time for all 4/9

@Reuters @darrinzl After almost two months, the quarantine measures at the hospital were relaxed further, and parents were allowed to switch places. Darrin was finally reunited with Rebecca 5/9

@Reuters @darrinzl Becs underwent grueling daily radiotherapy, which played havoc with her blood counts and led to extremely painful skin burns. She had become fascinated by the whole idea of medical imaging and radiotherapy, even looking into it as a possible career choice 6/9

@Reuters @darrinzl She found a positive from the lockdown: 'Online school was introduced, and I could finally, after five months of not being in school, join some lessons and communicate with my teachers' 7/9

@Reuters @darrinzl Four months after lockdown, Becs was discharged from the hospital in mid-July. She will continue attending as a day patient for the foreseeable future, and the family is still waiting to see if she will go to Oxford for the surgery the doctors think she needs 8/9

@Reuters @darrinzl There have been good moments too: She spotted the Comet Neowise soon after she left the hospital, and celebrating her 15th birthday with old friends meant everything to her 9/9