Ethan's Story
Ethan's family visited the Cotswolds in July 2023.
In October 2022 our lives changed for ever . After first experiencing joint pain in January 2022 leaving Ethan being unable to weight bear on his left leg we were reffered to orthopedics .
After numerous appointments with our GP and the orthopedic team we were then discharged .
Around the end of August/September 2022 the pain returned but it wasn't in one place it was ankles , feet, back and hips. Back to the orthopedic team we went to be given an appointment for 4 weeks time .
During the wait for this appointment I had to go to school daily to give alternative pain medication to Ethan.
October 4th 2022 we saw the orthopedic team who looked at Ethan and said it was just tight muscles and growing pains. I begged to differ and explained my concerns to be told to just give him a warm bath and carry on with medication as and when needed.
The following week Ethan had got so bad I went back to our GP she wasn't happy and re reffered us for a MRI or physio. The appointment came through imminently for December.
I wasn't happy and chased this daily to bring it forward with no luck! On Thursday 20th October 2022 I decided enough was enough and took Ethan to A&E the Dr examined him and found a few things and decided to do bloods. She came back to see me just gone 10pm in the evening to tell me he had infact has Leukaemia!!
I cried so much but on the other hand was so relieved someone actually listened to me and investigated properly to help our boy!
The next day we were told Ethan had Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia and the treatment plans were started straight away.
The last 9 months have been an absolute rollercoaster not only for Ethan but for us to as parents and his 3 siblings. He hasn't complained once and has dealt with each stage one step at a time with a massive smile on his face.
We are so thankful to be able to have a short break away and enjoy some "normality" so thank you from the bottom of our hearts!
Charities like Ben Saunders Foundation are so vital to cancer families to try and forget about cancer for a small period of time and enjoy family time together.