A mother has spoken of her anguish after what she thought were Covid symptoms led to a leukaemia diagnosis for her son.
Hayley Moran said her 10-year-old son Riley was admitted to the Queen’s Medical Centre with what she thought was Covid, or possible meningitis.
He was covered in a purple spotty rash that showed no signs of fading.
At around 9am on August 25 last year, having been admitted at around midnight, Hayley received the devastating news that her son Riley had acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL).
She says the conversation she had with doctors is now a blur.
Now Hayley, from Top Valley, has shared her account of the difficulties that both her and Riley faced after his cancer diagnosis – and how they are coping.
She said: “Just after midnight on August 25 we were admitted to QMC with what we thought was Covid-related problems or possible meningitis.
“After ringing 111 to ask for advice the lady told me not to panic but they were blue lighting an ambulance for Riley and within 10 minutes there was a knock at the door.
“Riley was covered in a purple spotty rash that didn’t fade when pressed with a glass.
“We were in A&E for around five to six hours.
“Around 9-10am oncology doctors came and took me to a side room to explain that Riley had ALL leukaemia.
“Most of the conversation was a blur. I could barely take in what they were saying. I’d been awake for over 24 hours but I had to sign consent forms for chemotherapy treatment to start straight away.”
Hayley has admitted that it took some time for her to process her son’s diagnosis – saying “it didn’t seem real”.
Riley also had to deal with being diagnosed with Covid at the time, with the pair forced to isolate in hospital without seeing family or friends, an experience Hayley confessed left her feeling “quite alone”.
She added: “I barely had time to comprehend what was going on.
“It took me a few days to truly understand the situation Riley was in. I couldn’t even say he had cancer for a few days – it didn’t seem real.
“As much as the staff were great supporting me through it all, I just wanted my family around me to help me process things. But that couldn’t happen due to the restrictions in place.
“I did feel quite alone.
“Riley amazed me how he took it all in and focused on fighting Covid and getting well enough to leave the paediatric intensive care unit.
“From then on he’s just fought back at every hurdle he’s faced and championed on to get home.
“That was all he wanted, to go home, be in his own bed and see his sister and all his family.
“He tested positive for almost six weeks which meant he was isolated the whole time we were admitted.
“As for myself I don’t really know how I’ve managed to hold everything all together, I haven’t had much choice but to just get up and deal with whatever the day throws at us.”
Fortunately, Hayley believes her son is now doing well and hopes he can get back to school full-time soon.
“As for how Riley’s doing now, I believe he’s doing really well.
“He’s powering through his chemo treatments with a cheeky smile and witty jokes.
“YouTube and TikTok have kept him laughing and entertained whilst we’ve been in hospital for treatments.
“We’re hoping Riley can get somewhat of a normal routine back and enjoy some of the things he’s missed out on in the last few months.
“And hopefully get back to full-time school as so far he’s missed so much time off school and misses his friends and teachers greatly.”
Riley’s step-nan, Emma Moran, decided to set up a GoFundMe page to raise money to help and support the family.
Emma said: “It’s a situation where if we didn’t have Covid we might not have gotten the diagnosis when we did. The battle that we had was that he did get Covid and he had to battle that as well.
“There were certain treatments that they couldn’t do because his body couldn’t cope with it.
“They were in hospital until the end of the year, really.
“But since then he’s been doing OK – he’ll be 11 on the 4th of February but then starts an intense round of chemo where he might lose his hair.
“We want to give something back to QMC as well – they’ve been amazing.
“These days kids grow up so quickly and I just feel like those last few years have been snatched from him and that’s another reason why I wanted to try and do something for him.”
Jo Smallman, ward manager on E39 at QMC, said: “We are all so pleased that Riley is doing so well. He is a pleasure to care for and has been so brave throughout the entirety of his treatment.
"Both Riley and his mum have been through a lot since his diagnosis and deserve to enjoy his birthday together. We wish you a very happy birthday for next month Riley.”
If you would like to donate to Riley's Leukaemia Fundraiser you can do so by clicking here.
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