Glasgow boy, 10, with rare cancer gets home for Christmas

The Glasgow schoolboy, who was diagnosed with a rare cancer earlier this year, has received an award in recognition of the courage he has shown during treatment.

The best gift for his parents, however, is the fact that against the odds, their son is home for Christmas.

“It's great - we weren’t sure if it would happen, but it has,” says Alexander’s mum, Katherine McElroy.

Alexander decorating the family's beautiful Christmas tree (Image: Colin Mearns/Newsquest)

“He has been in Manchester receiving proton beam therapy for six weeks – it’s a form of radiotherapy but with fewer side effects.

“He had to spend his 10th birthday in hospital, and he’ll have to start chemotherapy on January 2, but the treatment has gone okay so far.”

She adds, smiling. “He’s home, and he can have Christmas off.”

Christmas Day will be “quiet and relaxed” for Alexander, mum and dad, Alasdair, and sisters Mairi, 13, and Eilidh, 11, at their West End home.

Alexander with his mum and dad, Katherine and Alasdair, and his sisters Mairi and Eilidh (Image: Mark Anderson)

“We’re just planning a very quiet Christmas Day together, because we have been separated for so long,” says Katherine.

“Then, we’ll see extended family on Boxing Day. Life has been quite fragmented while Alexander has been in Manchester, so it’s just great being back together again.”

Alexander is a talented footballer, a keen runner and swimmer, and he loves playing shinty. In the spring, he complained of pains in his legs and back and initially, it seemed like it was a sporting injury.

Alexander was diagnosed earlier this year (Image: Mark Anderson)

As the pain increased, however, doctors carried out further tests which revealed he had a tumour on his spinal cord. On May 9, he had surgery to remove the mass and a week later, doctors told Katherine and Alasdair their son had Ewing sarcoma, a rare type of cancer found in the bone and soft tissue.

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Since then, the family’s life has been a whirlwind of treatments and therapies and travelling back and forth to hospital, with months of chemotherapy at the Royal Hospital for Children in Glasgow taking its toll on the young boy, who is a pupil at Glasgow’s Gaelic School.

Around 130 children are diagnosed with cancer in Scotland every year but research is helping to save more lives. Thanks to breakthroughs, children’s cancer survival in the UK has more than doubled since the 1970s.

Alexander with his mum Katherine and sisters Eilidh and Mairi (Image: Colin Mearns/Newsquest)

Alexander has received a Cancer Research UK for Children and Young People Star Award, supported by TK Maxx. As well as a star shaped trophy, Alexander also received a £50 TK Maxx gift card, t-shirt and a certificate signed by celebrities.

The charity’s spokesperson for Scotland, Lisa Adams, said: “Alexander is a real star who has been through so much at such a young age. It has been an absolute privilege to celebrate his courage with a Star Award.

Alexander with his big sisters Mairi and Eilidh (Image: Colin Mearns/Newsquest)

“We’re urging people across Scotland to nominate inspirational children like Alexander for a Star Award now, so that many more affected by this devastating disease can receive the acknowledgement they so richly deserve.”

To nominate a star visit cruk.org/starawards

Despite the challenges of the last few months, Alexander and his family are determined to continue speaking out about their experiences in a bid to help others.

“Anything that raises awareness, anything we can do to help,” says Katherine, determinedly.

“Alexander is amazing, he’s so brave, even after everything he has been through."

She pauses. “That’s what keeps me going, what makes me pull on all my resources, because he’s the one going through it," she adds.

“I just need to be there beside him, holding his hand.”