Mum 'thought the worst' over son Aaron's brain tumour

A mother of a five-year-old boy treated for a rare brain tumour said more funding should be put into research.

Nicola Wharton, 37, said she and husband Lee, 50, from Buckley, Flintshire, began to "think the worst" when Aaron was diagnosed with anaplastic ependymoma last year.

She is backing a campaign seeking parity on research funding with other cancers in the UK.

The Welsh government said it could not comment ahead of the elections in May.

Political parties standing for Welsh Parliament have their say below.

Aaron was four when he was initially diagnosed with Bell's palsy, a temporary weakness affecting the side of the face.

But his condition worsened and, after a series of MRI scans, Ms Wharton and husband Lee, 50, were told there was a large tumour at the back of their son's head.

"As soon as you hear that your child has a brain tumour, you automatically think the worst," she said.

Last April, Aaron had a 10-hour procedure to remove the tumour which his mother said affects about 30 to 40 children in the UK every year.

He also had to undergo a "gruelling" course of radiotherapy to try to prevent the tumour from returning.

Ms Wharton said Aaron was initially "very poorly" and although he started school last summer, he has been "left with some side effects" .

"He gets tired very easily, he gets some weakness on his left side and he has started to suffer from some short term memory loss too which we knew was a potential of happening after the radiotherapy," she said.

He continues to be monitored with MRI scans every three months.

"We need the government to understand there is more money that needs to be allocated to research not just for Aaron's type of tumour but for all brain cancers," Ms Wharton explained.

The business analyst has signed a petition created by the charity Brain Tumour Research, which is seeking the introduction of a "levelling up" fund of £105m and increased national investment in brain tumour research, to £35m a year.

It said that since 2002, £680m has been spent on breast cancer while £96m has been spent on researching brain tumours, despite these being the biggest cancer killer in children and adults aged under 40.

During a debate in March, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the UK government had put an extra £40m into brain tumour research "and we are certainly going to put more".

On NHS funding, Propel party leader Neil McEvoy said: "Propel has committed to appoint an independent investigator of Welsh government waste, fraud or corruption on day one of a Propel government. Money saved will be redirected to the NHS."

Wales Green Party leader Anthony Slaughter said: "The statistics speak for themselves. Brain tumours have a terrible impact on people and their families, killing more people under 40 than any other cancer. The research funding must match the need to ensure we find a cure as soon as possible."

A Welsh Conservatives spokesman said they "have long called for an effective solution for the scandal of missed cancer treatments to be a key task of any Welsh government, because under Labour - even before the pandemic - targets were missed and waiting lists for many conditions doubled in length.

"A Welsh Conservative government would work with stakeholders to develop, and publish within 12 months, new national delivery plans for a range of common conditions, including cancer, while establishing a new cancer centre of excellence for south-east Wales.

"We would back this up by funding - at approximately £150m over five years - and building a network of rapid diagnostic centres across Wales to cut waiting times for tests and reduce the need for repeat hospital appointments, and by guaranteeing an annual 2% increase (around £160m in the first year) for the NHS as part of out NHS Covenant".

The Welsh Liberal Democrats said Aaron's case was "heartbreaking".

"We must plan to meet the ongoing challenges of Covid-19 and ensure that those waiting for care such as Aaron get the treatment they need as quickly as possible"

Plaid said: "A Plaid Cymru government will take a leading role in providing research funding. We will seek to devolve Wales's share of UK Research and Innovation expenditure and for a block grant to be allocated based on population - with cancer research as a priority.

"Wales currently spends around 1% of its GDP on R&D (some £750m per annum). We should set a national goal of doubling that to 2% by 2030. We will increase government funding for innovation and R&D by £100m by the end of the Senedd term."

Welsh Labour said it was committed to investing in high quality cancer services.

"We were the first country in the UK to introduce a single cancer pathway making sure everyone gets the best possible care, we've brought forward proposals for a new cancer centre in south-east Wales and cancer survival rates are increasing," it added.

Other parties standing in the Senedd election in May have been asked to comment.