A brave Scots boy who is receiving palliative care for a rare brain cancer has taken part in a charity run to raise awareness of childhood cancer.
Caleb Stirrat, six, had his parents beaming with pride as he managed to walk over one lap of the Victoria junior parkrun in Glasgow with his pals and family on Sunday - raising over £1,500.
Mum Karen, 37, said was extremely proud of the youngster as he struggles to walk short distances and suffers from pain in his legs due to the after affects of chemotherapy, which he receives twice a day.
Caleb, from Clydebank, was spurred on by his siblings Poppy and Alyssia as he walked alongside his dad. The triplets were born prematurely at just 27 weeks in January 2016 after Karen and husband Andy underwent IVF.
Karen told the Record: "We decided to organise the run to highlight Go Gold for childhood cancer awareness month and managed to organise it in five days.
"I thought maybe we would get around 10 kids taking part and raise a couple of hundred pounds, but I couldn't believe it we ended up with more than 30 doing it and we have now raised well over a thousand pounds.
"Caleb has been on chemo since he was three so he struggles to walk but he wanted to do it and we took his buggy with us. Caleb managed one and a half laps with his dad while I went ahead with the girls.
"His sisters were encouraging him towards the end. To see Caleb going through all that he has and still be fighting is remarkable. It was amazing watching him and we are very proud of him and his sisters."
Caleb was diagnosed with a rare atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumour in 2019 and is family were told he had just months to live.
But the family were given new hope when Caleb was offered new trial drug tazemostat after major surgery to remove his tumour and are grateful he is still here.
Caleb's drug trial is due to finish at the end of the month so the family are taking each day as it comes and remain grateful that the drug has prolonged his life.
Karen added: "Caleb recently went for an MRI and there is no sign of any new growths.
"Every day, when we get up, we are thankful that he is still here.
"At the moment we are in limbo because the drug trial finishes at the end of the month and there is no plan B. The harsh reality is that he would not be here without chemo, we know it has been keeping him here, but if he were to continue that all the time it would kill him.
"It is a catch 22 - you're dammed if you do and you're dammed if you don't.
"All we can do is remain positive and hope for the best. You've got to enjoy every day as much as you can. Everything we do is in honour of Caleb and it is important for other families to remember there is hope and strength out there."
All of the cash raised from the family's event will go towards a new charity they have set up called Calebs Trio of Hope. The charity has three goals - support, experience and research - and will support kids with terminal cancer, as well as their families, by funding ongoing experiences, helping with bills and providing vial support during palliative care, as well as after a child dies.
Karen also wants to raise awareness of what palliative care means and help people to understand that life can go on while a child is receiving treatment.
Donation to the fundraising page for the charity can be made by clicking here.
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