THIS HEARTBREAKING last image shows a cancer-stricken boy dying in his dad’s arms after “asking for a photo with his final breath”.
Seven-year-old Braiden Prescott had battled neuroblastoma three times before he passed away while being cuddled by dad Wayne.
His parents have decided to share the heart-wrenching image of his final moments to raise awareness of the rare cancer’s early symptoms to help other parents.
Full-time mum Steph Prescott, from Ince, Greater Manchester, said: “I was at Braiden’s bedside during the night when I was woken up at 3am by the sound of him choking.
“I buzzed the nurse in and they told me it was nearly time – what I could hear was his death rattle.
“I woke Wayne up. I was supposed to be holding him but I couldn’t so they sat him on Wayne’s knee.
“Wayne cuddled him as I sat by his side holding his hand.”
Steph said Braiden’s outburst was all the more unusual as he had tumours on his jaw which meant he couldn’t open his mouth properly and hadn’t spoken for a few days.
The 26-year-old said: “He suddenly shouted out for his nanna and granddad as he knew they had been there that day.
“He then shouted ‘picture now’. I was a bit shocked but I followed orders – he’d not spoken in a few days but then all of a sudden he started shouting it.”
He passed away minutes after Steph took the heart-breaking picture of professional driver Wayne, 38, cuddling his son in September last year.
She said: “When he passed we were shocked, you don’t ever want to think you’re losing your baby, but we knew it was coming.
“I was numb. I didn’t really feel anything and Wayne lost lots of weight as he wasn’t eating.”
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Braiden was diagnosed with neuroblastoma – the same type of cancer as Bradley Lowery – at the age of two, but mum Steph said “mother’s instinct” told her he was poorly at just six months old.
Steph said: “Braiden was diagnosed in 2012 but I knew 18 months earlier something was seriously wrong – call it mum’s instinct.
“He was limping, had a high temperature constantly which we couldn’t get down, he was pale, and wouldn’t eat.”
Steph said Braiden was under a specialist for two months and was later diagnosed in February 2012 as having septic arthritis.
After an operation on his right hip he didn’t seem to get any better so Steph demanded a scan that found a mass on his stomach and the bone lining was thicker, which indicated cancer.
Steph said: “When we were told the outcome of the scan I was numb. It was like I was listening but I wasn’t there.
“They sat us down and told us it was either a rare type of cancer or leukaemia. Sadly they later found out it was neuroblastoma.”
Little Braiden underwent 11 different types of chemo and even went to America for immunotherapy however he relapsed twice and passed away at Derian House Hospice in Chorley, Lancashire, at 5.05am on September 1, 2016.
Steph said: “It was heart breaking watching him go through it all.
“After he passed away we had Braiden at home so family could see him one last time.
“His little brother Tyler was just five at the time. It was important to me that he spent time with him.
“He had been through the journey with him all those years – we felt it was important to be there at the end too.”
Steph and Wayne have also shared a touching picture of Tyler holding Braiden’s hand just days before his funeral.
RARE CANCER: WHAT IS NEUROBLASTOMA?
Neuroblastoma is a rate type of cancer that is mostly likely to affect babies and young kids.
The disease develops from specialised nerve cells – called neuroblasts.
These are left behind after a baby develops in the womb.
Neuroblastoma will typically first be detected in one of the adrenal glands, which sit above the kidneys.
Or, it can be diagnosed in the nerve tissue that runs along the spinal cord in the neck, chest, tummy or pelvis.
The disease can spread, most commonly invading organs including the bone marrow, bone, lymph nodes, liver and skin.
Around 100 kids a year are diagnosed in the UK, according to the NHS.
It’s most common in those under the age of five.
Scientists do not know what causes the disease, but in very rare cases siblings can be affected.
As a general rule the disease doesn’t run in families.
Signs of the disease depend on where it starts in the body.
The early symptoms can be vague and hard to spot. and can easily be mistaken for other, more common, childhood conditions.
The signs include:
- a swollen, painful tummy
- breathlessness and difficulty swallowing
- a lump in the neck
- blueish lumps in the skin and bruising, often around the eyes
- weakness in the legs and an unsteady walk. with numbness, constipation and difficulty peeing
- fatigue, loss of energy, pale skin, loss of appetite and weight loss
- bone pain, a limp and general irritability
- rarely, jerky eye and muscle movements
Source: NHS Choices
Steph said: “I know the pictures are hard to look at – hardly anyone sees a child that has passed away.
“I hope it will shock people into thinking about neuroblastoma and what these children go through.
“I just want as many people as possible to know about it. If your child has a limp, runs a really high temperature and isn’t eating get them to A&E for a blood test.
“Only then will you know for sure whether it’s something to be concerned about.”
Steph said they are learning to live without Braiden, but he will always be an important part of the family.
Steph said: “The first Christmas without him was hard, we were still a bit numb and in shock, you just carry on for the other two as normally as you can.
“It’s still hard now – it’s never going to get better, I think we just learn to live with it.”
“We speak about him every day as we want to make sure his memory is kept alive. He will always be known.”
Steph is now 18 weeks pregnant with a little girl, and believes she’s a gift from Braiden who always dreamed of having a sister.
Steph said: “Braiden’s sent her down from heaven – he always wanted a little sister.”
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