PJ Gray’s family wants to warn others of the symptoms, like stomach aches and weight loss, that could point to leukaemia
PJ Gray, seven from Cottingham, has a rare form of Leukaemia(Image: Submitted)
The family of a Cottingham-based seven-year-old battling a rare type of blood cancer have said their world has been turned upside down as their brave son and brother fights the disease. Sister Kiana Clifford says her baby brother PJ Gray is “just a baby really” but has been fighting a battle no child should ever go through. The family is raising money to help PJ attend chemotherapy appointments in Leeds and for the charity which supported PJ’s parents while he was in hospital.
PJ was only diagnosed in August after displaying very few symptoms, just weeks after his seventh birthday. He had been having stomach aches and a few nose bleeds towards the end of the school term, but it was only when he brought up a small amount of blood that his mother, Jane, realised something may be seriously wrong. After a blood test he was diagnosed the same day with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.
His older sister Kiana said: “When we first found out, we thought he didn’t have any symptoms. Some of the symptoms of Leukaemia are nose bleeds and stomach ache and rapid weight loss. We didn’t realise that he had symptoms of it. It was the last week of school and then we found out in August, he must’ve had it for at least a month. He was in loads of pain at school and we thought he had an upset stomach. When you have the odd thing you don’t realise. If he didn’t bring up that little lump of blood and go for the blood test, we wouldn’t have known until he was really poorly. It’s a horrible situation.”
She describes PJ, who is the brother to Corie, 26, Callum, 25, Kiana, 19 and Neveah, nine, as “the heart of the house”. “Before he was poorly he was really bubbly and silly and full of life,” she said. “One of his favourite things is to ride his bike. He likes acting silly and messing about, he’s proper cheeky. He does have a really caring side to him as well as being that cheeky boy, he’s really caring.”
Kiana has moved back into the family home with her son Ronnie, one, to support her mum Jane and step-dad, Phil, who is PJ’s dad.
Kiana said: “After about five weeks, he came home, but it was a massive adjustment. My mum, Phil and PJ all had bags packed all at the front door in case of emergency. Me and mum administer his medication through a tube in his nose. We have recently found out the treatment is working but he needs chemo for the next two years to make sure they kill the cancer completely. It’s like a weed – when you think you’ve killed it, it comes back.
“He was really bloated when he first came home and he kept collapsing. He was struggling to walk. You can see that he isn’t well, he wasn’t himself anymore. He was just in and out of sleep, on the sofa watching movies. Any sort of illness that we come down with we have to isolate, we can’t be anywhere near him, he’s got no immune system at all.” She said one of the hardest things to deal with is seeing PJ lose his hair, and Kiana says he can no longer bear to look at himself in the mirror.
PJ’s school, Hallgate Primary, has organised a fundraising day for PJ and Kiana says he is missing being close to his friends. She said: “At one point when they were in hospital, Mum was crying and PJ had said ‘Are you crying because I’m not very well?’. He does understand it to a certain point. He had asked my mum to explain what was happening. He won’t look in the mirror anymore because he has lost most of his hair. He said ‘I don’t look like me anymore’. One of the hardest things for my mum was him losing his hair. It makes you look so much different.”
The family have set up a fundraising page for PJ, to support them getting him to and from hospital appointments in Leeds. They also want to make a donation to Candle Lighters, a charity which supports children with cancer and their families. Candle Lighters helped fund accommodation for Phil and Jane while PJ was an inpatient at Leeds General Infirmary.
Writing on the fundraising page, Kiana said: “His treatment means frequent visits and long journeys to Leeds General hospital where the specialist paediatric oncology team is based, along with the many unexpected costs that come with supporting him through this challenging time. We are raising funds to help with travel expenses, accommodation, meals, and other essential support while he continues his treatment and recovery.”
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