Ashya King row: Brother defends parents in new video

A boy with a brain tumour whose parents took him from a UK hospital against medical advice had supplies he needed to keep him safe, his brother has said.

In a new video on YouTube, Naveed King said his parents ensured Ashya had the same resources available to him as in hospital when they took him to Spain.

Brett and Naghemeh King were arrested when the family was found in Malaga following an international search.

They are to appear in a Madrid court on Monday facing extradition to the UK.

The pair attended a closed hearing at a courthouse in Malaga on Sunday, under a police guard.

In an earlier video posted to YouTube, five-year-old Ashya's father had urged police to call off their "ridiculous chase".

He and his wife were arrested on Saturday and Ashya was taken to a children's hospital in Malaga, where he remains.

He has been moved from a high dependency to a lower dependency unit.

In the new video, his brother Naveed said the family had purchased everything they needed for Ashya's condition.

Ashya is being treated in a Spanish hospital

This included a new wheelchair, the same food Ashya was being fed at Southampton General Hospital where he was taken from, syringes, and a power cord for his feeding line.

"Whilst Ashya was in hospital for the first week, my father travelled in the morning, really early in the morning and came back late at night," Naveed said.

"Whilst he was at home, he did research for hours, sometimes did not even sleep. He did constant research to find out information that could help Ashya."

Mr King said in an earlier video posted that the family wanted to seek proton beam therapy for Ashya - a cancer treatment that the NHS would not provide.

It is understood they travelled to Spain, where they had a holiday home, to sell the property and release funds to pay for the treatment in the Czech Republic.

Mr and Mrs King have not been charged with any offence in Spain.

As they left a Malaga courthouse on Sunday, Mr King told the BBC: "We just want the best for Ashya."

Earlier, Hampshire Police refused to apologise for the way they conducted their search for the family.

They said medical advice was that Ashya had been in "grave danger".

Assistant Chief Constable Chris Shead said: "I make no apology for being as proactive as possible in trying to find him.

"I'd much rather be standing here facing criticism over being proactive than do nothing and explain why a child has lost his life."

In an earlier video posted to YouTube, Mr King said the family had "pleaded" with Southampton General Hospital for Ashya to receive proton beam therapy, but were told it would have "no benefit whatsoever".

Responding to the claims made in the video, a spokesman for the hospital said: "Our priority has always been Ashya's welfare and we are delighted that he has been found.

"Throughout Ashya's admission we have had conversations about the treatment options available to him and we had offered the family access to a second opinion, as well as assistance with organising treatment abroad."

The charity Cancer Research UK says proton beam treatment is available on the NHS in the UK only for eye conditions.

However, in some circumstances the NHS will pay for patients to go abroad for proton treatment.

What is proton beam therapy?

• It uses charged particles instead of X-rays to deliver radiotherapy for cancer patients

• The treatment allows high energy protons to be targeted directly at a tumour, reducing the dose to surrounding tissues and organs

• In general, it gives fewer side-effects compared to high energy X-ray treatments

• It can be used to treat spinal cord tumours, sarcomas near the spine or brain, prostate cancer, lung cancer, liver cancer and some children's cancers

• In December 2011, the UK Department of Health said that proton therapy will be made available for patients in London and Manchester from 2018

Sources: NHS England, Cancer Research UK

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