BiographyEthan was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder at the age of 3. He experiences a speech delay with limited vocabulary, mostly consisting of simple single words. Despite his verbal limitations Ethan displayed a keen interest in maps. By the age of 5 he astounded those around him by mastering all the countries and most major cities worldwide within just one week. His favourite among them was the United States of America and, remarkably, he memorized all 50 states in less than 2 days. Ethan's first words were not typical 'mum' or 'dad', instead, they were USA, Oklahoma, Japan and Osaka.
Known for his reserved nature, he prefers solitary activities in his own space rather than engaging with others. At 6 years old, shortly after beginning the new school year, Ethan began exhibiting flu-like symptoms. He developed swollen lymph nodes under both ears, red spots on his chest, nosebleeds, and pain in both legs making it difficult for him to walk. Concerned, we took him to the GP on three separate occasions, but each time, the GP reassured us that Ethan was simply battling a severe flu. We were advised to continue to give him Calpol and assured that he would recover soon.
On November 6, 2022, Ethan experienced vomiting episodes and bleeding gums. Rushed to the A&E, within 30 minutes an emergency blood test revealed the shocking diagnosis. Ethan had blood cancer and was promptly transferred to Great Ormond Street Hospital.
Upon arrival at GOSH Ethan's condition was critical, with significantly elevated blood pressure, heart rate, and dangerously low oxygen levels. Subsequent tests confirmed he had High-Risk T-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia, necessitating immediate treatment. Ethan commenced chemotherapy the following day, spending two weeks in the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit and an additional two months in the ward.
Throughout his treatment Ethan endured considerable physical and emotional challenges. The intensive treatment regimen took its toll leaving Ethan significantly weakened. He experienced mood swings and heightened emotions due to medication side effects. He rapidly lost weight and, devastatingly, his ability to walk. Within this difficult period one positive development was Ethan's gradual improvement in verbal expression. Initially limited to single words, he progressed to two-word phrases such as 'no doctor', 'no nurse', and 'no medicines' followed by three-word expressions like 'I hate doctor', 'I hate nurse' and 'I hate medicines'. Eventually he articulated a full sentence 'I want to go home'.
Now, after a year of chemotherapy, Ethan's condition is much better. Despite experiencing several seizures and receiving a formal diagnosis of epilepsy during the treatment, as well as undergoing countless blood and platelet transfusions, numerous inpatient stays due to high temperature and infection, he is now much stronger and happier than when he was first diagnosed with cancer. Although there have been many challenges along the way Ethan continues to make remarkable progress.
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