Mum's 'nightmare' after toddler's holiday rash leads to terrifying diagnosis
Parents are being urged to look for warning signs in their own children.
A family has been left devastated after their toddler returned home from holiday with a rash which turned out to be much more serious than they'd thought, and now they're warning other parents of the signs to look out for.
When Charlotte Squibbs noticed small "pimples" spreading across the body of her son Tommy, 3, she assumed it was a heat rash from their holiday in France.
The mum-of-three, aged 38, wasn't initially concerned, but as unexplained bruising began taking over, panic started to set in.
Shock diagnosis
She and her husband Daniel, 40, rushed him to their local doctors, who advised the parents to immediately go to hospital, where he was diagnosed with leukaemia.
Now, the family of five is coming to terms with their new reality, and are hoping to share their harrowing ordeal in a bid to raise awareness of the signs to look out for.
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"I felt shocked and massively upset, as we had no idea what to expect — we couldn't help but fear the worst," the primary school teacher from England told NeedToKnow.co.uk.
'Nightmare come to life'
"I'm absolutely heartbroken that our little boy has to go through this and I wish we could trade places. It's been a nightmare come to life and I'm scared about the unknown future of this battle."
The family, which also includes Louie, 9, and Reggie, 6, had just returned from their summer getaway to France at the end of August. Within days, the aforementioned rash started to appear, along with signs of fatigue and severe bruising.
At first, it was suspected Tommy, who has Down syndrome, had caught a viral infection, but after seeing the nurse's reaction, the parents knew it was something much worse.
"The nurse looked at his body and without a thought, sent us to A&E," Ms Squibbs said. "While there, they did blood tests and this in itself was very traumatic, as his veins were hard to locate.
"He was such a bubbly and outgoing boy, who was always smiling. I thought the bruising was because of the rough and tumble fun he has with his brothers, but I was totally wrong."
Traumatic treatment
In early September, they received his diagnosis and since then, the ordeal has become even more stressful. Due to him needing immediate treatment, he was given a blood and platelet transplant, which left Tommy "distraught".
"It was such a struggle to get a cannula in and he was holding up his hands and wiggling his fingers to ask them to stop," Ms Squibbs recounted. "As he's non-verbal, this was his only way of communicating, which was devastating to watch."
Now, he's currently undergoing chemotherapy treatment, but the parents remain hopeful and plan to raise awareness for the signs to look out for with other parents.
Family staying positive
"He is a little warrior and is fighting this in a way only he could with bravery, courage, and lots of smiles," Ms Squibbs shared. "Due to his Down syndrome, he has a lower tolerance for chemotherapy, so his other bodily organs could be affected. But, we're only one round in, so we'll have to see how it goes. He has good days and bad days, as do we, but we're trying to keep positive.
"We've both had to give up working for the foreseeable future to visit Tommy and look after our two other boys, but we're very lucky to have an incredible support system around us.
"For any other parents going through this, I urge them to stay positive, take each day as it comes, accept any help offered and look after yourself. You need to be strong for your child and be there when they need you.
"I'm so immensely proud of Tommy with how he's handling this horrific cancer, but we will continue to fight this together all the way up until he rings that bell in remission."
JAM PRESS
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