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Mother has ‘gut instinct’ that her three-year-old has brain tumour despite being mistakenly diagnosed with hayfever

Daniel Bell's growth 'probably been growing for years'

Thursday 20 July 2017 21:15 BST
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Daniel had to endure a nine-hour procedure to remove the tumour
Daniel had to endure a nine-hour procedure to remove the tumour

A mother's “gut instinct” told her that her three-year-old son had a brain tumour after he was mistakenly diagnosed with hayfever.

Rosie Bell's said her son Daniel was repeatedly sick and constantly feeling tired, but doctors initially prescribed him with antihistamines after telling her he had hayfever.

When the medicine did not have any impact, he was referred to a paediatrician, who performed a series of tests.

They discovered the infant had a tumour the size of an adult that had “probably been growing for years”.

"My gut instinct told me Daniel had a brain tumour," Ms Bell told the Mirror. "But when I took him to the GP the next morning, I felt ridiculous putting my fear into words. She thought it may be hay fever as he’d been rubbing his eyes a lot and prescribed antihistamines,"

Daniel underwent a nine-hour operation to remove the non-cancerous tumour. He was kept in intensive care for four days before being allowed to head home.

"Daniel was a typical mischievous three-year-old boy, always happy and a bundle of energy," Ms Bell said. "When he became grumpy and started throwing tantrums, I put it down to him being a toddler.

"Then Daniel also became lethargic. Shortly after getting up, he’d be lying on the settee and started having afternoon naps again. I thought he was growing or had picked up a virus like kids do.

She added: "Looking back, he was always falling over or bumping into things. I joked that he’d inherited my clumsiness. Again, I didn’t dream there was anything sinister."

Ms Bell said she was aware of brain tumour symptoms after she read the symptoms on HeadSmart card on Facebook.

The family are now backing The Brain Tumour Charity's HeadSmart campaign which is in the final for a National Lottery award.

As for her son Ms Bell said that he is "back to his usual boisterous self and we wouldn’t have it any other way."

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