'Sam's on the telly'
Wednesday 29th July 2009
It's horrible watching your child having an injection. But my 7-year-old son, Sam, had had more injections than hot dinners. He'd also had a Hickman line hanging out of his chest for the past six months, through which his chemo was pumped into his body.
Sam had leukaemia. His diagnosis in July 2007 hadn't come as a shock. He'd been tired and bruising easily for months. My husband, Lee, 39, and I had tried to be brave for Sam and our daughter, Jessica, 2. But the sight of him having the line put into his chest brought tears to my eyes. Sam was such a little trooper though. 'It's OK, Mum,' he'd say. 'This is to make me better.'
But last year, the line became infected. When the consultant at West Suffolk Hospital, Bury St Edmunds, had an idea, it couldn't have come at a better time. 'We'd like to try something on Sam,' he explained. 'It's called a Portacap. It's a small metal disc that sits just underneath the skin, and the drugs are injected into it. It won't get infected like the Hickman line.' 'Anything is better than that thing,' I said.
Soon, Sam had an operation to fit the Portacap, and his nurse, Audrey, came to our house every week to give him his injection. 'He really is so brave,' she said, after he pulled up his T-shirt for her. 'Actually, we'd like to film Sam having his injection, so we can show other children there's nothing to be scared of.' 'What do you think of that, Sam?' I asked. 'Will I be on telly?' he replied excitedly.
A couple of weeks on, Audrey came round with a cameraman who filmed it as she injected Sam. 'It doesn't hurt,' Sam smiled at the camera. 'I can even pull a funny face while it's happening,'
Thankfully, Sam's treatment is now finished. He still has check-ups, but things are looking good. Audrey tells us the video has been a success. Sam's even been named a TK Maxx's Cancer Research Little Star. And he is a star. In our hearts and on the small screen.