Tag: doctors
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Brave toddler left paralysed after doctors misdiagnosed his cancer for MONTHS
THIS is the toddler who has been left PARALYSED after docs misdiagnosed his cancer for THREE MONTHS.
Brave Ollie Knowles was screaming in pain when mum Sarah, 34, took him to see doctors a staggering FIFTEEN times.
But each time they dismissed him, saying it was just constipation or colic
When his aggressive cancer was finally found, it had spread to his spine causing him to be paralysed from the waist downwards.
If it had been caught earlier, then he would never have been paralysed.
Mum Sarah, who lives in Leigh, Lancashire, with husband Phillip, 34, who works for the payroll for Bolton council, said: ‘I was very angry for a long time.
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“They said that it was because of Covid, that a lot of the appointments were over the phone as we weren’t allowed to go to the surgery.
“We have received counselling to deal with our anger about it, and we are just trying to look top the future.
“But if he had been seen earlier, then it would have been caught before it had spread to his spine and paralysed him.”
The couple first noticed that Ollie was crying a lot and had a swollen stomach in July last year. They rang the doctors but could only get a phone telephone appointment because of Covid, and doctors said they thought he was constipated.
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Sarah, who owns a snooker club, said: “He was in so much pain all the time. He had been such a happy baby so it wasn’t like him.
“The doctors said it was constipation. But I knew that something was wrong. I would put him to bed and as soon as he laid down he was screaming. Now I know that it’s because the tumour was pressing on his stomach.”
Ollie continued to cry continuously over the next three months, and the couple consulted doctors 15 times but each time was told it was constipation or colic.
Sarah said: ‘We didn’t know what to do. Nothing was working to try and ease his pain. He would just be crying and upset constantly. It was so upsetting to see him like that.’
In September, Ollie woke up one morning, and he fell to the floor when he tried to stand up.
‘IN SO MUCH PAIN’
Sarah said: ‘I thought he was messing around at first, but then I realised that he had lost all feeling and sensation in his legs.
The couple rushed him to hospital where scans revealed the terrible truth. He had an aggressive childhood cancer called neuroblastoma, with a tumour the size of an apple in his stomach. And it had spread to his spine, causing the paralysis.
Sarah said: ‘It was devastating news. We couldn’t believe what we were being told. After all this time, he had been crying because the tumour had been causing him so much pain.’
Tiny Ollie had to start aggressive chemotherapy treatment straight away at Manchester Children’s Hospital, which finished in November.
Sarah said: “He was so young he didn’t understand what was going on, but he was so poorly with the chemotherapy that every time he was allowed home, he’d develop infections and a high temperature.”
The chemotherapy has managed to shrink the tumour, but Ollie’s legs still remain paralysed.
Sarah said: “We don’t know if he will ever walk. The GP surgery has apologised and said that due to Covid his cancer has been missed.
“We have since moved surgeries. We have paid a high price from covid – it has affected people in so many more ways than just having the disease itself.
“Even though he can’t walk, Ollie is still now such a happy little boy because he isn’t in pain anymore.”
Ollie has regular scans, and his tumour is now the size of a walnut. Doctors declared him in remission in January and so far there is no sign of the tumour growing any further.
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Sarah added: ‘He is going to be ringing the end of treatment bell at the end of this month, and it will be an emotional moment for us after everything he has been through.
“We are so proud of him and how he’s coped with it all.”
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My £8k Turkey teeth saved my life, I only wanted a straighter smile but now I can never thank doctors enough
LISA Robinson, 44, a mental health nurse, lives in County Durham with her partner Michael, 56, a shift manager at a chemical plant, and daughters Jade, 24, and Leah, 18.
Here, she reveals how her Turkey teeth saved her life after losing her balance on her way to Turkish dental clinic.
“As I opened my eyes in intensive care, after an emergency 13-hour operation, the surgeon told me I was lucky to be alive. I reached up to touch my bandaged head and the words ‘fist-sized brain tumour’ came flooding back.
The doctors had said I only had a 25% chance of surviving the operation, so I took a deep breath and thanked my lucky stars I was still here.
Just days before, on June 24 of this year, I’d flown alone to Antalya, Turkey, for dental implants. But as I walked into the Magic Smile Turkey clinic, I lost my balance and fell backwards.
I was put in a taxi to the private Anadolu Hastanesi Hospital nearby, where doctors thought I was possessed, because my brown eyes had turned blue and began rolling in my head.
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Up to that point, life had been great. I was a fit gym-goer, loved my job as a nurse and enjoyed spending time with my partner Michael and my two beautiful daughters.
I was due to start a new job, but first, I was finally fixing a life-long insecurity by getting my teeth done. There wasn’t anything ‘wrong’ with them, but I wanted them straighter and to have a nicer smile.
I’d seen great results from people on social media going to Turkey for dental treatment, so I flew there in February, paying £6,000 for veneers on my top teeth.
They also removed some of the bottom ones and replaced them with posts ready for the £2,000 implants, which would be done during a return trip in June, once my gums had healed.
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Two weeks before that second visit, I started experiencing excruciating migraines, which my GP put down to the stress of leaving my job as a staff nurse.
Arriving at my hotel in Turkey, I went to bed at 11.30pm but woke at 3am, drenched in sweat. I rushed to the bathroom to tip cold water over myself. The next thing I knew, it was morning and I was lying in an empty bathtub – I must have fallen in and passed out.
As I staggered into the clinic later that day, I collapsed and was sent to hospital, where I underwent an MRI scan. By this stage, I was vomiting and screaming.
The scan revealed I had a deadly 4.5cm glioblastoma brain tumour and a haemorrhage, requiring immediate surgery.
In my delirious state, I managed to share Michael’s phone number with the interpreter before the anaesthetic kicked in. He dropped everything to fly over, and when I saw him the following day, I burst into tears.
I stayed in intensive care for four days, before being transferred to the critical care unit. The surgeon was happy with the op results after removing the majority of the tumour and said it was incredible I was alive.
Two weeks later, I was told by the hospital that my insurers had refused to pay out because I hadn’t declared that I’d sought help for headaches before travelling. I was asked to make a payment of £12,500 and told that the remaining balance of £45,000 was due by August 13, which was a huge shock.
Returning to Newcastle Airport on July 13, I was taken straight to the Royal Victoria Infirmary, where a consultant told me I had a grade 4 brain cancer. I couldn’t stop crying as I thought I was going to die.
The cancer is aggressive and incurable, but it is treatable and we have a plan of action. I’m having five sessions of radiotherapy for three weeks and then chemotherapy in tablet form, so we’re remaining positive about my future.
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My sister Sharon set up a JustGiving page to help raise the money for my medical bills – it’s already reached nearly £23,000 – and we’ve also held sponsored walks, family fun days and raffles to collect as much as possible.
I still need to find time for a trip to the dentist to get some better dentures for my bottom teeth, as they were never able to fit my implants. I’ll always be thankful to the surgeon in Turkey who saved my life and gave me this precious time with my family.”