![\"Isabella](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/bbc_us_articles_995\/741bc86b46378cd4c998bdd081b9462c.jpeg\"\/)
<\/p>\nWhen Chris Capstick was diagnosed with cancer three years ago, his family made the decision not to use the word c-word in the house.<\/p>\n
Instead the disease was known as “daddy’s little monsters” for the benefit of his two youngest children.<\/p>\n
But in November, Chris, from Bromborough in Wirral, was given the heartbreaking diagnosis at the age of 40 that the cancer was terminal.<\/p>\n
His wife Lauren said she knew she had to help her children understand what was to come, while not terrifying them about the reality of terminal cancer.<\/p>\n
“It was really, really hard,” said the 30-year-old, who works as an arts coordinator for young people but has taken time away to support her husband.<\/p>\n
“Hearing the word terminal\u2026you’ve kind of got to get yourself ready in a way and prepare yourself. I suppose you start like a grieving process.<\/p>\n
“Having a six-year-old and a two-year-old, we didn’t really know how to navigate it.”<\/p>\n
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Isabella hopes the book will help other children following her dad’s diagnosis [Family handout]<\/p>\n
This is when the idea of writing a rhyming storybook with their eldest daughter Isabella, who is now aged six, was born.<\/p>\n
“We thought what a great thing to do little cartoon monsters in a way that aren’t scary,” said Lauren.<\/p>\n
“The book’s very subtle. Isabella doesn’t even know the word – we haven’t told her that word.”<\/p>\n
Isabella wanted to write the book from her own perspective with lots of colourful illustrations on each page.<\/p>\n
“We actually kept it from Chris,” said Lauren.<\/p>\n
“We didn’t tell him about it and we gave it to him on Father’s Day. He was speechless. He didn’t know what to say.<\/p>\n
“He didn’t know whether to read it there and then because obviously the front cover said ‘Daddy’s little monsters’ he knows that is what she knows [about the cancer].<\/p>\n
“He just told her how proud he was and we’re both so proud of her.”<\/p>\n
The book project has helped to keep the conversation flowing about how Isabella was feeling.<\/p>\n
“It has actually stopped her from closing off emotionally, so she’s very, very open with her feelings and questions towards the diagnosis,” said Lauren.<\/p>\n
While the book was initially to help their own family, it is now available to buy on Amazon after a family friend suggested that it could also help others facing similar circumstances.<\/p>\n
“We just weren’t expecting it to blow up, to be honest,” she said.<\/p>\n
“It’s been up for a week and she has sold 138 copies.”<\/p>\n
![\"Chris](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/bbc_us_articles_995\/000716911076fecc63c799eb177ca4e0.jpeg\"\/)
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The Capstick family now want to help others facing the same heartbreak [Family handout]<\/p>\n
About one in 29 children and young people aged five to 16 will face a bereavement at some point in their childhood of a parent or sibling, according to the Childhood Bereavement Network.<\/a><\/p>\n That is roughly one per class.<\/p>\n For those diagnosed with cancer, the impact of their diagnosis on families is often one of their biggest worries.<\/p>\n ‘Ask me anything’<\/p>\n June Davis, lead nursing and allied health professional adviser at Macmillan Cancer Support, said there was no right or wrong way to discuss a cancer diagnosis with children.<\/p>\n “People often feel that talking to children will make them worry but it is important to give them the chance to talk openly about their fears and worries,” she said.<\/p>\n “Parents could also consider using simple language and keeping the information relevant to what is happening now rather than what may happen in the future.<\/p>\n “It’s always a good idea to give children the option of asking questions and talking about how they feel.”<\/p>\n She said for younger children, it can be helpful to use simple explanations and familiar terms.<\/p>\n “Don’t feel you need to cover everything at once but do try to keep the conversation on-going by perhaps saying \u2013 ‘you can always ask me anything, even if you ask it again’,” she said.<\/p>\n “This can help surface any worries they may have such as, for example, cancer being something that they might catch.<\/p>\n “Reassure them where you can, that their routines will continue.”<\/p>\n If you, or someone you know, have been affected by cancer, then you can find more advice on BBC Action Line.<\/a><\/p>\n Listen to the best of BBC Radio Merseyside on Sounds<\/a> and follow BBC Merseyside on Facebook<\/a>, X<\/a>, and Instagram<\/a>. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.<\/p>\n