Making happy family memories after heartbreaking news
UPDATE 22 AUGUST: We were sorry to learn that Cyrus lost his battle with cancer. We send our condolences to all his family.
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The mother of an Amble youngster with an incurable form of cancer has been pulling out all the stops to make as many happy family memories as possible.
Cyrus with his sister Cheyenne, and brothers Johnathon and Shay
Kizzi Henderson told The Ambler that she was devastated by the news that her son Cyrus had only a short time to live, and as his 13th birthday was coming up, she wanted to hold the best birthday party he could ever wish for.
Cyrus Mitchell was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia in February 2021 and underwent intense treatment, which Kizzi said the family wondered if he would survive. But against the odds, he went into remission, only to relapse just before his birthday last year. Initially, Cyrus responded well to a round of Car-T cell therapy, and in January this year, he was able to ring the bell signalling the end of his treatment.
But tragically this improvement did not last, and at the beginning of June, Kizzi was given the devastating news that Cyrus only had months to live.
Kizzi said the family wanted “to give him the best birthday ever after everything he has been through, he really does deserve it, and to make memories to last us as a family. We brought his birthday forward and he had an amazing time.”
The family held a party for Cyrus at the Newcastle Foundation e-sports centre, and to which all his friends from the hospital ward were invited.
“Cyrus played games with his friends and family and sat and chatted and laughed with everyone,” said Kizzi.
And now she is determined to do what she can to keep the family as happy together for as long as possible.
“We are just trying to spend as much time as a family as we can. We have been going out for meals a lot as a family as Cyrus is very family oriented, we are looking for places that are wheelchair accessible to have days out with him while he is still able to.”
She also added that she wanted to raise awareness of Cyrus’ condition as his condition was not diagnosed at first. “We were told Cyrus had viral flu for a few weeks, and unfortunately it’s a story I’ve heard a lot from some of the other parents I have met, but unfortunately at that point the damage is irreversible.”
A crowdfunder has been set up to help make Cyrus’ remaining time as happy as possible: https://gofund.me/b6960a83
Anna Williams
Update: In a previous version of this article we gave Cyrus the wrong surname. We apologise for the error.
