Family thought toddler was fussy - then a tumour popped out of stomach
A Nottingham boy diagnosed with high-risk cancer after suffering intense stomach pain.
Archer Crawford-Speakman, now four, was taken to A&E after a lump appeared on the side of his abdomen, which turned out to be a tumour. His mother, Jade, 29, first took Archer to the GP, December 2021, when a lump appeared on his abdomen.
After Archer had been lying awake in pain through the night two weeks after his GP visit, she decided to take him to A&E. This is where doctors first suspected Archer could have a kidney issue.
Following a series of tests, Jade and Archer’s father Adam were told the news at the end of December that Archer, who was two years old at the time, had cancer. Doctors confirmed in early February that it was high-risk neuroblastoma- a cancer that starts in certain very early forms of nerve cells.
Jade told the Nottingham Post: "I had a feeling before going in that was what it's going to be but obviously nothing prepares you for being told that your child's got cancer. Every parent’s worst nightmare is hearing that your child has cancer, and nothing prepares you for hearing the words 'we estimate your son has two weeks to live.
Baby boy has spent his life in hospital as doctors are 'scared' to discharge him
"There were little things that in hindsight are all symptoms but we just put them down to him being a toddler during the pandemic. So he was quite clingy with me, and he'd take one bite of something and then say that's enough.
"We thought he was just being a fussy toddler, but it was actually just that the tumour had pushed everything over so far that he couldn't stomach much. They were things at first we just put down to him being a toddler, but it wasn't until the tumour popped out that we knew it was something more serious."
Neuroblastoma is a cancer of specialised nerve cells, called neural crest cells, which are involved in the development of the nervous system and other tissues. It mostly affects babies and children under the age of five, and around 100 children per year are diagnosed in the UK.
Archer started chemotherapy at Queen's Medical Centre, January 21, and did three rounds of 10 days, but then spent eight days in ICU. He then underwent second-line chemotherapy around March. Archer was then transferred to Sheffield Children's Hospital to begin a high dose of chemotherapy and underwent a stem-cell transplant.
In August of that year, Archer had surgery to remove the tumour as well as one of his kidneys and have a feeding tube added. He spent four months in the ICU and was discharged last year, December 22. Archer is now awaiting his end-of-treatment scans to find out if he is cancer free or if a new plan needs to be put in place, but his mother said that cancer will always be a part of the family's life due to the fear of relapse.
Archer has been able to spend more time at home in 2023, and his health has been improving. Jade added: "We've been at home a lot this year and he's like a completely different child. If you couldn't see his hickman line and feeding tube you wouldn't know he'd been poorly. When the hospital staff who haven't seen him for six months see him, they can't believe it's the same child. Archer has been through so much and we’re incredibly proud of how strong he’s been and the recovery he has made.”
“We now have plans in place for him to begin reception in September and we also have two caravan holidays planned so we can make up for missed time and memories as a family of five. We’re sharing our story in the hope that it raises awareness and the understanding of childhood cancer, and highlights the importance of new scientific research to help beat this devastating disease.”
Children with Cancer UK is one of the leading national children’s charities working towards a world where every child survives cancer.
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