Boy learns to walk again after life-saving brain tumour surgery

Chace was in hospital for five months after it was discovered he had a brain tumour

Chace was seven years old when he was diagnosed with medulloblastoma, a cancerous brain tumour, which required immediate surgery and follow-up care.

The life-saving surgery at Birmingham Children's Hospital in 2021 left him paralysed, cognitively impaired and unable to swallow or speak.

Now 11 years old, the boy from Wellesbourne, Warwickshire, is able to eat, drink, talk and even walk with the support of a frame.

For the last three years, the family has been supported by Shine a Light, a childhood cancer charity based in Rugby, Warwickshire, which receives funding from BBC Children in Need.

His mother Emma said she was putting him to sleep one night in September 2021 when he had a stroke.

In hospital it was discovered he had tumours on his brain and spine and he remained there for five months for treatment, including chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

The 46-year-old said: "It didn't sink in for weeks that he had cancer and the severity of it, because he was stage four."

Younger brother Cole, Emma, and Chace have all been supported by the Warwickshire charity Shine a Light

Chace's tumour is incurable due to where it is in his brain.

"We live day-by-day, it's like you're living with a ticking time bomb", said Emma.

The surgery has also left him with a condition called Posterior Fossa Syndrome, which can cause memory loss, unsteadiness and a decreased ability to talk.

But she said there had also been "quite a funny" side effect.

"We call him no filter Chase now because, when he started talking again, his new personality came out and he'll say what's on his mind."

Despite all of the challenges Chase now faces, he has returned to school, and although he is now a couple of years behind where he should be, Emma said "he just gets on with it".

Sam Schoolar was diagnosed with leukaemia when she was 10 years old

Shine a Light was founded in 2016 by Sam Schoolar, a survivor of childhood cancer.

"When we first met Emma and the boys, I think all of them had lost a lot of confidence and were really struggling, and we have seen how they have grown," Ms Schoolar said.

The charity offers hands on support for families through counselling, home visits, activity days and day trips.

"We are the only centre in Warwickshire that support childhood cancer families in the way that we do," said Ms Schoolar.

BBC Children in Need provides core costs which she said was "vital" to keep the charity running, and next year they plan to purchase a new building to ensure a "secure future".

Emma added she was "really grateful" for the support of the charity.