**Singer Kenny Thomas Draws Strength from Daughter’s Ongoing Battle with Rare Brain Cancer**
Soul singer Kenny Thomas, well-known for a string of hits during the 1990s such as “Thinking About Your Love”, has credited his daughter Christina’s extraordinary struggle with a rare brain tumour as the inspiration behind his first album release in 15 years. Thomas and his wife Francisca’s journey with Christina’s diagnosis has been marked by uncertainty, heartbreak, and resilience, transforming the family’s perspective on life and the future.
The family’s ordeal began in late October 2016. After a seemingly typical family day out trampolining, Kenny and Francisca noticed their four-year-old daughter had developed an unexplained limp in her right leg. At first, they assumed a minor hip injury was to blame and promptly sought medical reassurance. “We took her for an X-ray,” recalled Kenny, “but nothing showed up.” Concerned, the couple received the first indication that something more serious might be involved when a doctor suggested a neurological assessment.
From that moment, Christina’s health began to deteriorate rapidly. Weakness spread to her right hand, her limp worsened, her speech became slow, and eventually, even her eye struggled to close. These alarming symptoms prompted further investigations, and in February 2017, the family’s worst fears were realised. Christina was diagnosed with an incurable and inoperable mid-brain glioma – a rare and aggressive form of brain cancer. Kenny vividly remembers the crushing moment: “We were told, quite bluntly, that she wouldn’t see out the year,” he said.
Faced with only two bleak options – chemotherapy to temporarily slow the tumour or palliative care – the family entered a traumatic period of soul searching. “We didn’t want to put her through gruelling chemo when there was no hope of a cure,” Kenny explained. Unwilling to simply accept the prognosis, they began searching for alternative treatments and consulted medical specialists in the US, Mexico, India, and Germany.
After extensive research, the Thomases located a clinic in Cologne, Germany, offering dendritic cell therapy, an experimental form of immunotherapy not available on the NHS. Christina’s doctors agreed to the new approach, and she underwent treatment abroad. That initial six-month prediction soon proved far off the mark: “Six months passed, then a year, then a year and a half – and Christina was still fighting,” Kenny shared. Since 2020, she has continued her treatment regime in Germany, now under the supervision of a specialist in Frankfurt.
Alongside the medical therapies, the family have embraced holistic approaches, including dietary changes intended to boost Christina’s immune system and counteract the illness’s progression. “The battle is ongoing,” Kenny said, describing a life lived in constant expectation but also hope, “we haven’t lost, and we haven’t won.”
Christina’s case took a turn in 2023 when the family, having originally declined a tumour biopsy, agreed to the procedure at Great Ormond Street Hospital. This allowed doctors to accurately diagnose her with diffuse leptomeningeal glioneuronal tumour, a newly classified and exceedingly rare childhood cancer. Encouragingly, recent advancements have produced a targeted therapy suitable for her condition: larotrectinib, unavailable at the time of her initial diagnosis.
Now 12, Christina attends a specialist school catering to her complex physical needs – neurological damage has affected her mobility, sight, and cognitive abilities. Importantly, as Kenny observes, her fighting spirit and zest for life remain undiminished. “She doesn’t always grasp everything she’s facing, but that hasn’t stopped her enjoying friendships, laughter, and each day as it comes.”
The story of Christina’s fight has deeply influenced Kenny’s return to music. His new album, *Unstoppable*, due out this August, takes its name from her courage and determination. “It seemed fitting – we just keep going, whatever comes,” Kenny reflected. He also notes how performing and creating music have offered him solace during the most challenging years: “Music has always been its own kind of medicine for me.”
While Thomas’s music career once dominated the UK charts, his recent years have focused on family. With a new album and an upcoming 2026 tour scheduled for Gateshead, Manchester, London, Southend, and Birmingham, Kenny re-enters the music world carrying the hope and strength embodied by Christina’s undaunted journey. The Thomas family’s story is not only one of hardship but an ongoing testament to perseverance, love, and the search for hope in the darkest of times.