Last weekend marked one month since we found out our youngest son has Infant Acute Myeloid Leukaemia.

On April 12th our world was turned upside down when our precious baby boy Tommy was rushed to Rainbow Babies in an Emergency Ambulance at just 2 months old.

After spending 2 days at Rainbow Babies, where the doctors had originally diagnosed him with Bronchiolitis, Tommy's symptoms worsened and a blood test was carried out. Within minutes our lives changed inconceivably. We were told that our beautiful baby boy has Leukaemia. Tommy had his first platelet transfusion right away. When the transfusion had finished the PICU Retrieval team were waiting for us and took him the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit.

Tommy arrived with the highest white blood cell count the doctors had ever seen. He deteriorated rapidly and couldn’t breathe for himself so he was put on a ventilator and sedated. A sample of Tommy’s bone marrow was taken to help determine his diagnosis. Tommy began his first course of Intensive Chemotherapy the next day and we saw his white blood cell count begin to decrease. He required several blood and platelet transfusions each day, along with lots of medication. Tommy had to have a central line fitted as well as cannulas in both arms and the surgeons are going to fit him for a Hickman line, a line that goes directly into an artery in her heart to administer the ongoing medication, fluids and blood transfusions he needs within the next few days. Tommy also experienced Kidney Failure and had to be put on a Dialysis Machine so that the machine could do the job of her kidneys whilst his weren’t able to function. He has X-Rays and Ultrasounds most days to monitor the functioning of her organs.

After 16 long days the ventilator was taken away and finally we could hold our baby boy in our arms again.

Tommy then became severely unwell with an infection and had to begin four of the strongest antibiotics to help her fight it.

On Thursday Tommy left Intensive Care and he is now in the Children’s Specialist Cancer Unit where he will remain for a minimum of six months whilst he undergoes several courses of Intensive Chemotherapy. Tommy will need to have weekly Lumber Punctures where the doctors will put a needle into his spin to deliver chemotherapy directly into his Cerebrospinal Fluid. He will have a further bone marrow sample taken when he is strong enough to be able to. The results from this will tell us if Tommy will need a bone marrow transplant. He also has a Nasogastric Tube to enable him to have expressed breast milk as he continues his daily fight with this nasty disease.

We are heartbroken. This is every parent’s worst nightmare, and we are still trying to process how this has happened to our little boy at just 3 months old.

Infant Acute Myeloid Leukaemia is a rare condition that is normally only seen in adults, and Tommy’s consultant, with over 30 years of experience in Paediatric Oncology, told us Tommy is the most complex patient she has ever seen.

This fundraiser has been created to help support Tommy and our family through this incredibly difficult time. The road ahead is long, complex, full of uncertainty, and emotionally and financially exhausting for our family. We are navigating this as best we can whilst also caring for Tommy’s older siblings at our home in Sandusky, 1.5 hour away from where Tommy is being treated.

All money raised will go directly towards:

Supporting Tommy’s care during his prolonged hospital stay

Accommodation and travel costs so we can stay by his side

Living expenses while we are away from work

Any additional medical or therapeutic needs he may have in the months to come

We’ve set a modest goal to help with immediate expenses, but this is just the beginning of a long journey. Your support, whether through a donation, a share, or simply keeping us in your thoughts and prayers means the world to us.

From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for reading, sharing, and standing with us and with Tommy. And a special thank you to all the medical professionals that have been a part of Tommy’s story so far. These people are our heroes. Together, we can give him the strength and support he needs to fight this.

Thank you

Ward family