A family has been left devastated after a four-year-old boy was diagnosed with a rare cancer despite being told by doctors that his symptoms were related to constipation.
Theo's Struggle
Theo Lock had only just started primary school when he began complaining of pain in his legs. The pain was so severe that it prevented him from walking properly and led to him missing out on joyful childhood experiences.
His mother, Jess Horne, would take him to hospital on numerous occasions, only to be told that her son may be severely constipated or may have arthritis. Still, Jess persisted until an x-ray was conducted on Theo.
Diagnosis and Treatment
Doctors found what they believed to be a cyst on Theo's hip, and an ultrasound of his stomach also revealed a mass near his kidney. He was then diagnosed with stage four neuroblastoma in March.
Speaking about the family's ordeal, Theo's auntie, Poppy Lock, 33, said: "To hear that he was in hospital with suspected constipation to now being told that he's got stage four neuroblastoma, it's come as a huge shock because it's such a rare cancer."
A rare cancer that only affects 100 children between the ages of 0 and 14 years old in the UK each year. Neuroblastoma develops in a child’s nerve tissue.
Symptoms of Neuroblastoma
- A lump that usually develops in a child's belly, neck or chest
- Swollen lymph nodes
- Bone pain
- Dark circles around a child’s eyes
Following his diagnosis, Theo, who is originally from Thornton-Cleveleys, Lancashire, was transferred to the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital where he is undergoing intensive chemotherapy.
Impact on Theo
"He was getting a lot of pain in his legs; he would cry when he was baring weight on his legs and not being able to walk very far," Poppy said.
"At first he was handling it really well," Poppy explained. "He's such a happy, smiley little boy. He loves Spiderman, he loves Black Panther and all that sort of thing. He loves playing with his toys."
But as the weeks have progressed the chemotherapy has taken effect on his body, now he just sleeps most of the time. "It's completely taken over his full body and he's basically confined to his bed all the time," she added.
Fundraising and Awareness
Poppy set up a fundraiser to support Jess who has left her job to be at Theo's bedside. They have so far raised £23,000.
She told the M.E.N: "It's amazing to be honest. When I first started it, I set my goal at like £2,000. Every time I was refreshing the page it just went up and up and up. People have been so generous."
"As well as trying to raise as much money as we can to support Theo and his family. It's about raising awareness as well. His mum had to take him back to the hospital and persevere with it before he got the diagnosis. With it being such a rare cancer, we want to raise awareness about it as much as we can."
