A furious mum has blasted doctors who repeatedly missed her baby daughter's brain tumour - despite videos showing the tot suffering seizures. Esmai Wright is now battling 50/50 odds of survival after she was sent home from hospital several times despite suffering multiple seizures.
Mum Chloe Wright, 26, said she was given a "different diagnosis" every time they went to A&E before being sent on their way and told to wait for a referral letter. Chloe was assured her daughter was "perfectly healthy" even though she was "vacant behind her eyes".
The tot was finally diagnosed with a rare and aggressive anaplastic ependymoma tumour the size of a grapefruit. Disturbing videos show baby Esmai suffering a seizure just hours after doctors dismissed her mum’s fears that she was unwell.
Chloe filmed her tiny daughter going into spasm in a desperate bid to show doctors the little girl was seriously ill. The first video was taken in hospital in Stoke on October 6 last year and shows Esmai appearing to go into a trance with her eyes wide open.
Mum Chloe holds onto her daughter's hand until the seizure passes. Despite showing medics the videos, Chloe was repeatedly told Esmai was “perfectly healthy”.
The next day Esmai was filmed at home suffering a similar episode which was caused by an undiagnosed brain tumour. She was finally diagnosed with a large brain tumour and is currently undergoing gruelling chemotherapy.
A CT scan revealed Esmai had a tumour the size of a grapefruit which had caused her entire brain to be pushed over to the left side of her head. She has been undergoing chemotherapy which has left her with painful ulcers and burns in her mouth, which Chloe treats with ice cream on her dummy.
Chloe, of Stoke-on-Trent, said she first knew something was wrong when her little girl began "staring into space" in October last year. She was referred to a walk-in-centre by her local GP and Esmai was diagnosed with rigors – often known as absent seizures.
The two of them were sent home but later that day Esmai suffered further seizures and an ambulance rushed them both to Royal Stoke University Hospital. Chloe said: “We went through a cycle of Esmai having seizures, which I would film and show to the healthcare team when we went to hospital.
"Every time we saw a doctor, we had a different diagnosis and each time, we were told that she was perfectly healthy and to wait for the referral letter. I am obviously really angry that it took this long to diagnose my little girl. It is not common at her age to have seizures.
"One doctor went to speak to a practitioner without even seeing Esmai and said they didn't think it was seizures. I was really mad.
“They could have gone down a different route if they had picked it up earlier. I had to fight because I knew something was not right.
“I knew my baby wasn't well and I asked the doctor if he could do something, but he said there was nothing wrong with her. I was angry nobody was listening to me.
“My daughter is on chemotherapy now – every two weeks for a year – we have our good and bad days, but I do think this could have been avoided. The doctors said she would need at least a year of chemotherapy treatment and that the tumour is life-threatening with a survival rate of 50 per cent.”
Esmai will continue chemotherapy until November and further treatment options of radiotherapy is available should the tumour grow. Chief Nurse Ann-Marie Riley, from University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust, said: “We understand it is an extremely distressing experience for any parent when their child is unwell and we are very sorry that Ms Wright has had cause to complain about the service she and her child received here at UHNM.
“It is our aim to deliver the highest standards of care possible and we are in contact with Ms Wright so we can fully investigate her concerns and resolve any issues.”
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