Diagnosing a brain tumour

After months of various different symptoms, an MRI scan finally showed Blake had a brain tumour. Immediate surgery showed that it had spread to his spine. Blake was given three weeks to live. The family were heartbroken – the diagnosis had been missed for months.

After consulting with surgeons from around the world, it was decided to give Blake chemotherapy, although it had never been tried before on a brain tumour at this late stage. He nearly didn’t make it!

The long-term effects are from the treatment not the cancer. Blake is paralysed from the chest down and has some brain damage. It’s getting harder as he gets older. He needs carers to sleep with him at night. He needs help for every aspect of his life.

You have to be strong for your child. You’re all they’ve got. But Blake helps us a lot. He’s got such a happy, funny sense of humour. He’s got the zest for life he always had.

The doctors believe the tumour will return. An earlier diagnosis would have given Blake a better chance. We need more research so there are better treatment options – to give our children a better chance of a better life.

“Our little boy was a healthy, happy three-year-old until September 2013. Our lives then changed forever. Blake was three years old when he was diagnosed with medulloblastoma – a brain tumour.” His mum, Llian, tells their story.