Supporters rally to help brave Jaye, 11

COMMUNITIES across Ireland have come together to support a "funny, smart and vivacious" schoolgirl who is battling a rare and aggressive form of cancer.

- BY RUAIRI SCOTT BYRNE

Last year, Jessica 'Jaye' Gibson, 11, from Naas, Co Kildare, was diagnosed with Alveolar Rhabdomyosarcoma - a soft tissue cancer that typically affects children and teens.

Concerns first emerged last August after Jaye began experiencing some headaches and a swollen tongue.

Parents Clara and Brian brought her to hospital to undergo tests where she was told she had a benign tumour on the cranial nerves at the base of her brain.