A pregnant mum-of-six has said she and her partner are 'broken' after their smiley daughter, four, was given a devastating diagnosis just days after Christmas.
Kirsten Lorde, from Gorton, thought her daughter Kyra was just sick with the flu when she began with a temperature and was coughing. But after struggling to eat and then complaining of a sore back, she was taken to hospital for tests.
It was then that doctors told the family that the four-year-old, who had been 'laughing' and enjoying festive celebrations just days earlier, had Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia, a rare and aggressive type of cancer that affects white blood cells. The news, she says, has 'broken' the family.
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Kyra had been initially assessed on January 2 after being taken to hospital, before being immediately rushed to be treated by specialists after her oxygen saturation levels plummeted. Doctors began cannulating the youngster and were taking blood tests before she spent the night at Royal Manchester Children's Hospital. It was the following day, on January 3, that they were told the horrifying result of the tests.
Speaking to the Manchester Evening News, Kirsten said: "She had a high temperature that we had tried to get on top off with medicine. We had a normal Christmas and New Year and a big family party. Everything was fine. We didn't realise how serious it was and just thought it was a chest infection or flu.
"A couple of days after she started saying she didn't feel very well and had a temperature, but there were so many bugs going around over winter, and she was still eating. On January 2 she just took a strong dive and got very upset, saying her legs and back were hurting.
"We couldn't get on top of her temperature and knew something wasn't quite right, so agreed to take her to hospital, and she just declined really quickly. We couldn't ever have predicted this - it took us by surprise, especially because of how she had been a couple of days earlier, laughing and smiling. It's broken us."
Kyra, who was excited to return back to nursery to show her friends the tablet and doll that she got for Christmas, has remained at Manchester Children's Hospital ever since. Mum Kirsten, who is currently on maternity leave preparing for her seventh child and due to give birth within weeks, said the youngster is 'really confused' and 'just wanting to go back home'.
Kirsten also claimed doctors suspected Kyra could've developed the cancer a couple of weeks before Christmas. She has since started chemotherapy, had a bone marrow sample taken as well as a lumbar puncture.
She added: "If she hadn't have gotten ill, we may not have known and it may have been to late. It is so much to take in.
"She doesn't know what's going on. She is really confused and just wants to go home, it's breaking our hearts. When the doctors come in with masks she thinks they're going to hurt her.
"A lot of people have said if we'd have just put it off, like some parents would if they just think it's a cold, it could have been a lot worse. Thankfully, the leukemic cells are not in her spinal fluid and it is curable, but each case is different."
The NHS states that one of the biggest factors that affects the outlook for people with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia is their age. The younger a person is when they are diagnosed and treatment begins, the better the outlook. From the available data in England it is estimated that, in those aged 14 or younger, more than 9 in 10 will survive for five years or longer after diagnosis.
Kirsten's sister Stephanie has launched a GoFundMe page, hoping to raise some funds for the family. Since first being shared by the Manchester Evening News, the growing total has reached over £2,000.
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