Today we’d like to share with you the story of Ted Thomas – or ‘SuperTed’ as he’s affectionately known by many – and his family, comprising dad Andrew, mum Amanda, and big sister Elsie, from Driffield, East Yorkshire.
Ted was born in April 2020, and despite some initial difficulty breathing and spending some of his early days in the intensive care unit, Ted came into his own, meeting new milestones in his first six months. However, later that year in November, one night Andrew and Amanda would sense that something wasn’t quite right with Ted, who felt clammy and had a bloated tummy. After calling 111, Amanda took Ted to Scarborough hospital, where some checks and an x-ray were done. Not long after, Andrew would receive a call at home to say he needed to come to hospital, as Ted would need to be transferred to the Leeds General Infirmary as a matter of urgency.
Andrew told us, “During the afternoon of Friday 4th December, Ted was formally diagnosed with neuroblastoma. Our consultant, Danielle, sat us down to tell us the full diagnosis and treatment plan. Ted had a tumour in his abdomen, probably adjoining his kidney or adrenal gland, that had grown to be 14cm wide. On the scan, his kidney was squashed against his skin, with the mass taking over more than one side of his little body. It was truly a sickening sight.”
“Ted would be given a course of treatment that would begin with four cycles of chemotherapy, with three days on the treatment for three hours at a time, and the remainder of the cycle would be recovery time. Ted would need to be in hospital as an inpatient for each period of treatment, and would have a scan at the halfway point, to check progress.”
“Joining a ‘top 100 club’ is so often a positive experience, but as you begin to let the truth of this despicable news sink in and realise that neuroblastoma ‘only affects 100 children in the UK each year’, you instantly recognise and feel the pain of all those other parents who have had to endure this moment.”
By January 2021, at just under nine months old, Ted had already received two rounds of chemotherapy and by March, another two, totalling four, with an operation to remove the tumour following in April. Surgeons were able to remove a large amount of Ted’s tumour with some residual tumour left which will be monitored. Last week he was able to have his Hickman line removed, and he continues to improve: crawling for the first time this week.
Just the day before Ted was taken into hospital, Andrew, who was taking part in Movember at the time, had spoken at a school about the likelihood we all face of being touched by cancer at some point – but never dreamed of what would happen just the following day.
Andrew continues, “We went from watching a game of rugby to 24 hours later being in Leeds, 50 odd miles away, and from having two healthy, happy babies to one of them fighting for his life. We didn’t see this coming.”
Incredibly, whilst experiencing this whirlwind, Andrew decided to fundraise for Candlelighters, rallying friends and family to set up ‘Super Ted’s Miles’. In September, the team will be taking on the Leeds Half Marathon, and in the meantime, they’ve been training intensely – completing a ‘virtual’ half marathon last month.
Andrew said, “God forbid it should ever happen to you, but if it does, we certainly pray that the Candlelighters staff are there to meet you and help keep the light burning for whatever the duration of your collective ‘stay’. After all, this is not just about Ted. Any child of a close family member, friend, or work colleague could stumble unwittingly into this disease, and they will undoubtedly rely on the skill, love and care of this fabulous charity. It is safe to say; we would not have coped as well as we hopefully are doing without them.”
So far, Andrew and the rest of the ‘Super Ted’s Miles’ team have raised over a staggering £27,000 for Candlelighters, for which we are so grateful. This amount will make an amazing difference to lots of children and families and could fund all of our children’s talking therapies and sibling groups for a whole year.
