A mum thought her son was being 'silly' by not walking properly until discovering it was a symptom of cancer - claiming their Christmas Day walk 'saved his life'.

Ania Hough said her then eight-year-old son Jamie Hough had first complained of a headache in October 2023 and started vomiting. Initially, the mum-of-two thought he had picked up a school sickness bug but after calling 111 she took him to A&E at Maidstone Hospital in Kent.

The 42-year-old claims her son wasn't offered tests or scans and his symptoms were put down to dehydration from the stomach bug. When Jamie's 'sporadic' headaches started to occur daily, Ania took him to a GP where she claims she was told he was suffering from migraines.

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Over the next two months, Ania gave her son Calpol to ease his pain while they waited for a hospital referral letter from a neurologist, which she claims never arrived. When Jamie woke up with a headache on Christmas day Ania suggested the morning walk believing the fresh air would help.

But when he began to drag one of his legs and insisted he wasn't being 'silly', the property development company admin worker rushed him back to A&E. There, a CT scan revealed abnormal brain activity and Jamie was transferred to King's College Hospital in London to undergo a gruelling 12-hour brain surgery.

Biopsy results showed he had a fast-growing 6cm by 5cm cancerous brain tumour called choroid plexus carcinoma. Now cancer-free, Ania is sharing Jamie's story to encourage parents to push for scans if their child complains about consistent headaches.

Ania, from Staplehurst, Kent, said: "The headaches got worse and more often, they were daily. On Christmas morning, he woke up jumping on the bed and opened presents.

"We went downstairs and he said he had a headache so I gave him some medicine. I thought the fresh air might help him, so we put our boots on and headed out for a Christmas morning walk.

"The headache didn't go away and started to complain about his jaw hurting near his ear, which had never happened before. As we started walking back, he started to drag his leg. I told him to stop being silly and to walk properly but he told me he was.

"As we walked to the car he threw up and then dozed off on the way to A&E." After his first surgery on December 26th, Jamie underwent a second 12-hour operation on his brain to have the rest of the tumour removed on January 12th 2024.

He also had two other surgeries to have a drain and then a shunt fitted to help drain excess fluid from his brain, before being discharged from hospital. He then underwent six rounds of chemotherapy and 30 sessions of proton beam therapy.

Ania said: "It was a bit of a Christmas miracle that they did the CT scan. When we ended up being transferred to another hospital, the neurosurgeon said it was a matter of hours [to be able to save him].

"If Jamie hadn't had gotten there when he did, they wouldn't have been able to help him as the tumour was creating massive pressure in his brain.

"It was swelling and there was a cyst growing out of it and it would have caused too much damage. It was heartbreaking to hear this."

Jamie finished his last round of chemotherapy on September 29th 2024 and then was given the official all-clear in November 2024.

Now the family are looking forward to Christmas this year and 10-year-old Jamie has already written his letter to Santa. Ania said: "There are still a mixture of emotions of trying to get over the scariest Christmas we have ever had.

"There were many heartbreaking moments [at that time] where he would look me in the eye and say, 'Mummy, I'm begging you, let me die because this pain is too much'.

"I'm grateful that I took my family out on the morning Christmas walk. It was hard to go on the walk that day with him. It was meant to be the way it was and I'm grateful we decided to do it and then take him to A&E."

Ania is now raising awareness to other parents about Jamie's diagnosis to urge them to get their child checked out if they are experiencing daily headaches.

She also praises the Lennox Children's Cancer Fund for the continuous support they have shown her family through Jamie's cancer journey and after treatment.

Ania said: "As a parent, if your child is suffering from headaches, push for a CT or some kind of scan. I'm grateful that Jamie is good and I'm grateful for the junior doctor, but I'm aware the outcome could have been very different.

"I think the hospital messed up with Jamie and should have done more on our first visit. It wouldn't have saved him from the diagnosis of cancer but, the tumour was growing and they could have caught it earlier.

"If they had, maybe he would have only had one surgery instead of four and wouldn't have ended up with a shunt."

An Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS trust spokesperson said: "We are very pleased to hear Jamie is doing well following treatment.

"While we can't discuss individual cases, patient safety and high-quality care are always our top priorities.

"Our clinicians look carefully at a patient's symptoms and decide whether tests are needed, and which ones will provide the clearest answers.

"CT scans aren't always undertaken straight away because we have to balance the benefits with the risks of radiation.

"If anyone has worries about their care, we encourage them to get in touch so our teams can review their treatment and offer support."

Choroid plexus carcinoma is a high-grade, fast-growing brain tumour that mostly grows in one-year-olds. The first symptom of this cancer is pressure headaches that usually occur in the morning.

Symptoms for choroid plexus carcinoma include:

• Nausea and vomiting


• Abnormal eye movements


• blurred or double vision


• Trouble walking


• Headaches


• Seizures