Thousands raised for boy, 7, with bone cancer

An appeal for a seven-year-old boy with bone cancer has raised more than £13,000 in a week.

Oliver, who turned seven in hospital on New Year's Day, was diagnosed with the disease in January after he started suffering from leg pain last autumn.

His family, who live in Ross-on-Wye, said they had been overwhelmed by the level of support after a friend started a GoFundMe page for them.

"[It shows] how a small town like Ross can come together," Oliver's father Shaun told BBC Radio Hereford and Worcester.

He added that he wanted to say "a very, very big thank you...for the love and support that we've had."

Oliver's doctors initially thought his leg pain was caused solely by a bone infection.

"I can't even tell you how awful it was to get that news, that it was a tumour," his mother Laura said.

She added Oliver was "a lively, happy little lad" who loved playing football, riding his bike and going for family walks with their pet dog.

Hari Fell, who works with Oliver's grandmother at a hotel in Gloucestershire, said she started the GoFundMe page to help the family cover the costs of looking after him.

Ms Fell said Oliver's parents had to stay in hotels during their son's stint in Birmingham Children's Hospital, and they may not be able to work as much as usual in the coming months as they support him with his cancer treatment.

"Every single pound counts," she said of the fundraiser, which more than 470 people have donated to so far.

Oliver has now started chemotherapy and his father said he had had two days of treatment so far.

"He's done really well, for a seven-year-old. He's always got a smile on his [face]," Shaun said.

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