Parents were told not to be 'overly worried' about three-year-old son's rash that turned out to be cancer
Niamh Shackleton
Featured Image Credit: PA Real Life
The father of a boy who was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia aged three said doctors told him his son had 'weeks, if not days' to live without treatment.
James Martin said his son, Oscar, now seven, developed a rash in May 2022 which Oscar’s mother, Philippa Martin, said looked 'red and blotchy'.
When Oscar’s temperature spiked, Philippa said she took their son to a GP, who told her that Oscar’s ear was 'inflamed' and it looked like he had an infection, so he was prescribed antibiotics and sent home.
But within 24 hours, Philippa said she noticed a 'pinprick purple rash' on Oscar’s eyelids that did not fade when pressed on, as well as a rash on his chest.
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Philippa said she went back to the GP, who referred Oscar to a paediatrician at Chesterfield Hospital, UK, but told her not to be 'overly worried'.
Once admitted, Oscar had blood tests and doctors revealed they suspected the three-year-old had leukaemia, and Philippa said it felt like her 'world had ended'.
Within hours, the blood cancer diagnosis was confirmed on June 1 2022 at Sheffield Children’s Hospital.
James said Oscar underwent two years of 'intense' cancer treatment until July 2024, leading to his son going into remission.
On the moment he found out about his son’s diagnosis, James told PA Real Life: "I remember going outside not long after ringing my work to tell them the news. And I could feel my heartbeat in my head."
"I felt like I was almost separated from my body… and I was just in another world. It was so surreal,” he added.
Oscar, the youngest of four children, was described by his dad as a 'bouncing' boy who 'loved life' and enjoyed 'getting his hands dirty' in the family’s allotment garden.
But James remembered Oscar kept getting ill 'week after week' in the first few months of 2022 with what doctors thought at the time were viral and ear infections.
James said: "There were just lots of little things that weren’t adding up at the time."
Things escalated when Oscar developed a rash and a temperature in May, so Philippa took him to the GP and he was prescribed antibiotics, and she noticed he 'seemed relatively well' the next day.
But then she noticed a rash on his eyelids and chest, so she took him back to a GP and he was referred to a paediatrician at Chesterfield Hospital.
Philippa called James, who met her and Oscar at hospital, and the medical team cannulated their son and took blood samples.
The next morning, a team of four doctors called James and Philippa into a room, while a play worker stayed with Oscar.
Philippa said: "As we entered the room, I noticed a box of tissues on the table, and my heart sank. The doctor informed us that our son had suspected leukaemia; it felt like my world had ended.
"From that moment, everything became serious."
Oscar was blue-lighted to Sheffield Children’s Hospital and, by the end of that day, James said his son’s diagnosis of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia was confirmed and their 'lives changed forever'.
Within a week, James said Oscar had his first procedure to have a port fitted that would inject 'high dose chemo' into his body and James will always remember that day as his 'toughest point'.
James said Oscar went from being a 'little boy who seemed fit and well' to entering the operating theatre and 'coming out a different child'.
"He was a different colour," James said. "It was like his soul was stripped out of his body. He didn’t want to talk to me and Philippa. He couldn’t really do anything.
"He just wasn’t our little boy and he was in a lot of pain… I was watching a child struggling and I just wanted to swap positions with him because it was honestly so hard and so horrible."
Over the course of the next two years, James said Oscar underwent 'hundreds and hundreds' of doses of chemotherapy, including an early type of the drug that his son had an allergic reaction to.
Alongside this, Philippa said Oscar picked up 'several serious infections' throughout his two years of treatment, which led to hospital stays lasting 'several days or weeks'.
She said: "Seeing my child needing oxygen support, wired to drips, unable to stay awake and shaking with high temperatures was very difficult as a parent."
Oscar completed his treatment on July 7 2024, and rang the bell for the end of cancer treatment that same month, but James said his son still experiences regular 'night terrors' and 'anxiety attacks'.
Throughout it all, James said 'gardening together' with Oscar has helped them both, physically and mentally.
James shares Oscar’s story via Instagram, where he said he hopes to 'try and help' as many people as possible who might be struggling after a cancer diagnosis.
James said: "Sometimes it’s good to speak to somebody who’s actually done it. So when somebody is really struggling and going through hell, we’ve been there."
"I’ve had so many messages in the last few years," he went on, "so it’s nice to be able to pass on that advice."
For James, it is all about trying to turn a 'negative into a positive' by giving others hope that there is life after cancer.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact the American Cancer Society on 1-800-227-2345 or via their live chat feature, available 24/7 every day of the year.