A brave schoolboy who shaved his head to be like his Celtic idol Scott Brown as he battled cancer, is delighted it's finally growing back after he went into remission.
Six-year-old Ace Ward lost his hair, eyebrows and eyelashes after months of gruelling chemo therapy as he battled leukaemia.
The Irvine youngster first captured our hearts back in March when we told how he overcame his fear of losing his hair by saying 'I'll have a Broony!', just like his bald Hoops hero, Scott Brown.
But now, after 10 months in hospital, the youngster is finally back home after being told he was in remission in June.
Mum Vicky , 34, told the Record he looks like 'a wee fuzzy kiwi'.
She said: "His hair finally started coming in and he's delighted. He looks like a wee fuzzy kiwi. It's pure white because he's always been really fair but it's definitely coming back. And he has eyelashes and eyebrows too."
The family, including dad Brian, 37, sister Hallie, seven, and brother Harrison, nine, held a 'maintenance party' for Ace last week with only people in their family bubble, to mark the next step in his long recorvery.
The family all dressed as Ace's favourite superheroes to mark the occasion.
Vicky says maintenance means Ace gets to be home full tome, with hospital visits scaled back to once a month and surgery ever 12 weeks instead of once a week.
She said: "With any other cancer, being in remission means they get to ring the bell, it's basically the all clear. But with blood cancer there is a maintenance stage which means we get to have Ace home and we give him medication orally here. He can finally lead an almost normal life.
"We only have to go to hospital once a month, as opposed to basically living there and he will only need a lumbar puncture once every 12 weeks.
"Covid is obviously still a huge factor for us, but he has options now when he wakes up in the morning. It's not just hospital. We are just so thankful to have got to this stage."
The family now hopes when the Covid numbers begin to drop again, Ace will be able to return to school.
Vicky added: "The next step is to get Ace back to school. At the moment his immune system is too low so it is far too much of a risk, but we are keeping everything crossed that he will be able to go back to the classroom soon."
