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20th September 2024
07:23pm BST
Hearing the words 'your child has cancer' is a nightmare no parent ever wants to face. However, it's a reality for so many families in Ireland, including Laura and Steven Reilly who found out their darling son Jude had leukaemia last summer.
All parents ever want is for their children to be happy and healthy so how do you even begin to wrap your head around such a frightening diagnosis?
In an interview with Her.ie, Jude's mum Laura opened up about the reality of having a toddler with leukaemia and how she is facing this devastating chapter of their lives by leaning on the ones she loves.
The mum from Co. Kildare first noticed something was wrong with her little boy when she was pregnant with her second child, Florence.
She explained that Jude started to look very pale, he stopped eating and started to lose weight.
"That was the first signal to us that he wasn't well. He went into decline then and he was diagnosed in June 2023."
Laura said they took Jude to A&E in the summer of 2023 and that was when their world changed forever.
The mum knew things were serious when her son's nurse went to get a second opinion.
"I kind of had a feeling myself that it was something serious. It wasn't something small like a cold," she said.
As a mum, Laura said it is almost impossible to digest the news when a doctor tells you your child has cancer.
She said she felt numb in the moment she found out about her son's leukaemia.
"One day you're out and about having a normal family life and then you're in Crumlin Hospital for the foreseeable future and you just don't know what lies ahead."
Not only was Laura and her family dealing with Jude's harrowing diagnosis, but the mum was also 10 weeks pregnant when Jude's doctor broke the news to them.
The team at Crumlin Hospital were there every step of the way and did everything they could to make things somewhat better for them.
"The highlight was being able to bring our dog in, who is basically Jude's brother. Having that moment of happiness and seeing a smile on Jude's face when Dobby was there was great."
It was little things like being allowed to bring their dog Dobby, thanks to the help of Cian's Kennels, in or a cup of tea and a biscuit from the night nurse on St. John's ward that helped during those low moments.
"Hopefully he'll get to ring the bell in July next year and our lives will somewhat go back to normal," Laura shared.
Jude's treatment will continue until 2025 but his treatments are going well.
Jude, who is now three years old, is currently attending preschool and is loving it so far. The mum said it has been a joy to see her little boy enjoying his life again, and forgetting that he's sick.
"He's able to go to preschool and he's enjoying life a little bit more," Laura shared.
September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, and to mark this, Childhood Cancer Ireland is shining a light on what it means to live with, and beyond childhood, adolescent and young adult cancer.
Childhood Cancer Ireland is a parent and survivor-led organisation that understands the impact that a diagnosis of childhood cancer has on the entire family; and supports them in a number of different ways including a psychosocial programme; parent workshops; access to play therapy; parent peer support; and Beads of Courage.
For further information visit https://childhoodcancer.ie/.
You can support Jude and his family by donating to their Childhood Cancer Ireland fundraiser here.
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