Ten-year-old Avery Williams, who was diagnosed with retinoblastoma at three months old, is looking forward to the fifth biennial Avery's Journey fundraiser April 12.

Avery Williams is mostly just like any other 10-year-old. She likes to play volleyball, but really loves to sing and dance. She takes singing lessons and her favourite subjects are art and math "sometimes."

But when her mother Ericka Dixon-Williams is beside her in a movie theatre, sometimes the whole audience laughs and Avery is silent. Then Ms. Dixon-Williams realizes, 'oh, she probably didn't hear that.'

Avery is considered deaf-blind and sometimes overcompensates with one sense and so misses out on information.

Avery was diagnosed at three months old with bilateral retinoblastoma, a cancer that affects about one child in 15,000, with about 23 children affected in Canada each year. Without early detection and appropriate treatment, retinoblastoma is always fatal.

Avery has endured cycles of chemotherapy, laser and cryo therapies to fight several tumours in both her eyes. In 2001, she was diagnosed with permanent, bilateral, high frequency hearing loss, a side effect of the chemotherapy. Later that year, to prevent the cancer in her left eye from spreading into her brain, her eye was removed and Avery was fitted with a prosthetic eye.

Her 'good eye' has permanent blind spots and she can only read one line of writing at a time. Words get lost on a page. She misses high frequency sounds, so sometimes can only catch part of her teacher's instructions.

But she has two intervenors, who assist her to make sure she gets all the information in school. Avery, her intervenors and teachers also use FM hearing aids so she can hear them more clearly. Her computer uses larger fonts and has a larger keyboard and Avery's larger calculator is "super cool because it talks."

Ms. Dixon-Williams and her husband Junior started Avery's Journey in October 2001 to raise awareness and generate funds for Avery's education plan and for retinoblastoma research at Sick Kid's hospital.

So far they have raised $36,000 - $24,000 to the Hospital For Sick Children Foundation for Retinoblastoma Cancer Research and $12,000 for Avery's education plan, publications to increase awareness of the disease and for other charities that support childhood cancer.

The fifth biennial Avery's Journey fundraiser will be Saturday, April 12 at Chandelier Place and will feature a hypnotist show, dinner, dancing and silent auction.

"We just try to raise money for sick kids, to get medicine for other kids and to tell people what retinoblastoma is and the risks and how to cure it before it gets bad," said Avery, a Grade 5 student at Gatestone elementary school in upper Stoney Creek.

It is a lot of work for the family - collecting and sorting auction items, publicizing and organizing the event, booking entertainment. But while Ms. Dixon-Williams considered stopping, she found she couldn't.

She dropped off a poster at a store and after the owner read it, he said he'd never heard of retinoblastoma.

"I thought, 'OK, keep going,'" said Ms. Dixon-Williams. "If I make a difference in one person, in a child's life, that's worth it."

Avery visits the ocularist three times a year to get her prosthetic eye cleaned and checked and every two years, she gets a new eye. She has annual check-ups at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto and visits her audiologist twice a year. Other than that, she tries not to dwell on her challenges.

"My friend died from the same type of cancer. So sometimes I get scared. I don't know when it will come back again. It's scary, but I try not to think about it," Avery says.

Sometimes news like the recent death from cancer of musician Jeff Healey, a retinoblastoma survivor, shakes up Ms. Dixon-Williams, but then she shakes it off.

"We live to build memories, that's what it's all about," she said.

The Williams family, which includes Avery's big sister Savoy, 12, enjoys going to the movies, visiting Niagara Falls and playing sports. They went to Disney World through the Children's Wish Foundation in 2005 and spend one week each summer at Camp Trillium, which is for children with cancer.

"I get nervous when I zone in on the details," Ms. Dixon-Williams said. "The teenage years could be challenging. Your cells become more active as the body grows and if one RB gene is affected, she will get cancer. That's quite scary.

"But what's so profound about Avery is she never gives up. Even with her homework and she is doing the regular curriculum. She never says, 'I don't feel like doing this.' She never ever, ever, ever gives up. That amazes me, truly amazes me. She gives us strength to do all that we do."

The Avery's Journey fifth biennial fundraiser supporting retinoblastoma research and Avery's education plan will take place Saturday, April 12 at Chandelier Place, 660 Barton St. E. Cocktails at 6 p.m., dinner at 7:30 p.m. Performers include Paul Anthony, hypnotist and vocalists Josephine Biundo and Tiana Traficante.

Tickets are $40 or $350 for a table of 10 (Mastercard and Visa accepted). Advanced ticket sales only. For tickets or information or to donate, call Ericka at (905) 578-9832, For tickets, call Joy, (905) 526-1376, DiBerardo Salon, (905) 664-9959 or M.O.C.A. Studio and Spa, (905) 662-3513.

How to spot signs of retinoblastoma

Retinoblastoma is a rare childhood eye cancer that primarily affects children under age seven.

Without early detection and appropriate treatment, retinoblastoma is almost always fatal.

Retinoblastoma is hard to detect. The critical clue for retinoblastoma is the glimpse of a "white pupil" in the child's eye or a white/yellowish pupil in a photograph.

For more information, please visit www.retinoblastoma.ca, www.rbsociety.ca or www.averysjourney.ca.