Cambridge hospital cat Henry comforts girl with brain tumour

Amber O'Gorman made it her "mission" to track down Henry in Addenbrooke's Hospital after her brain surgery

A cat that made a hospital its second home has proved a great comfort to a teenager recovering from brain surgery.

Amber O'Gorman, 17, was diagnosed with a tumour in March and has been treated at Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge.

"A nurse told me about Henry, the famous ginger cat that hangs out at the hospital, and I made it my mission to find him," she said.

"It was so lovely cuddling him - he seems to suck up all the negativity and replace it with positivity."

Amber, who lives in St Neots in Cambridgeshire, began experiencing bad headaches in December.

"Her GP prescribed migraine medication but I thought we should go to her optician to have her eyes checked," Amber's dad, Lee O'Gorman, said.

"The optician noticed a swelling behind her eye and we were sent immediately to nearby Hinchingbrooke Hospital [in Huntingdon]."

Amber loves cats and was photographed with her pet Oscar before her recent surgery

After several tests, she was diagnosed with a brain tumour and transferred to Addenbrooke's for emergency surgery.

"I was in shock," Amber said.

"I wasn't expecting to be told I had a brain tumour at 17.

"I kept saying to the doctor 'I don't want to die'."

Amber was thrilled to track down Henry and have cuddles with him, as "he makes staying in hospital so much better", she said

After a shunt was inserted to drain fluid, Amber underwent brain surgery on 18 March.

"The surgeons removed more than 90% of the tumour," her dad said.

"We were told she could be in hospital for about two weeks and we were warned about slurred speech or mobility issues, but, in fact, Amber's recovery was absolutely amazing and even the doctors couldn't believe how fast it was."

Amber, pictured here with family friends and her dad (right), said she was proud to join the "baldy club"

No longer confined to bed, the teenager began searching for Henry, the fabled "hospital cat" her nurse had mentioned.

Although the fluffy ginger pussy has a loving home nearby, he has been favouring the corridors and the foodhall of the hospital for years.

Pictures of the photogenic feline spawned a 6,500-member Facebook page, which sets out to "keep up morale of all at Addenbrooke's".

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Her doctors encouraged Amber to get up and move around, so the quest for Henry was an ideal excuse to do so.

"It took a while, but I made it my mission, and yes, I found Henry," she said.

"He was so soft, and he just lay there and let you cuddle him.

"It felt like he was sucking up all the negative energy, and turning it into positivity."

Henry is about nine, and has been visiting the Cambridge hospital for several years

She was allowed to leave hospital on 22 March, just days after surgery.

Now back with her own beloved cat, Oscar, the teenager said it was "so great to be home".

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Her dad, Lee, said the family was "beyond proud" of Amber.

"She's taught a lot of family and friends a lot of things.

"Amber's bravery and resilience is what has got me through this."

Amber was studying childcare at college before she became ill, and hopes to be able to return to her course in September.

She added: "I may be bald and have a brain tumour - but I'm fighting this thing."

When she came home from hospital, a relative gave Amber a cat toy, which she has named Henry

A Cambridge University Hospitals spokesperson previously told the BBC: "Henry the cat is very much a character and does seem to have found a place in the hearts of many of our staff and patients.

"However, for obvious reasons of infection control, no animals other than Pets As Therapy dogs and guide dogs are allowed in the hospital so please do not tempt him into the concourse with food or other treats, which are also bad for his health."