Kentish Gazette Canterbury & District
Boy, 14, ‘learning to walk and talk’ again after stroke
Youngster with rare illness placed in coma
The family of a 14-year-old boy were told to say their goodbyes to the youngster after he suffered a stroke that left him fighting for his life. Canterbury schoolboy Stephen Gaskin was discovered “unconscious and barely breathing” inside his Herne Bay home, having complained of severe headaches earlier that day. After being airlifted to London and placed in a medically induced coma, he went under the knife to treat a rare brain condition.
His mother, Katie Gaskin, believes its effects will “stay with him for the rest of his life”, as he learns to walk and talk again at a specialist facility in Surrey.
For months, the mum-of-four has been making costly 140-mile round trips to the medical centre to be with her son.
“He is in rehabilitation at Tamworth House Medical Centre now,” the 34-year-old told the Gazette.
“The right side of his body doesn’t work as well as his left side, so he is having to learn how to walk and talk again.
“He also has palsy of the right side of his face - his right eye doesn’t close properly and he has double vision. “Mentally, he can’t keep things in his head and he needs to have things explained to him. “Of course, it’s been a lot for him to deal with, but I think he is coping amazingly.”
It is believed the stroke in September was brought on by a rare neurological condition called arteriovenous malformation (AVM).
Sufferers have veins and arteries knotted together in the brain. Though the cause is unknown, people who have the abnormality are usually born with it. The biggest risk to people with AVM is that if it goes undetected, at some point they may suffer brain damage or a stoke as a result. Tragically, this is what happened to Archbishop’s pupil Stephen.
“It was the worst day of my life,” Ms Gaskin recalled.
“I was at work when my mum - who was watching Stephen - called me to say he was complaining of having a very bad headache and that he had vomited several times.
“I rushed back home and found him unconscious and barely breathing.
“It was a huge shock - I was six months pregnant at the time.”
Stephen, who went to scouts in Whitstable, was put into a medically induced coma and flown to King’s College Hospital. Scans revealed he had a “massive blood clot” in his brain. “It was all very overwhelming - at one point we were being told to say our goodbyes to Stephen,” Ms Gaskin added.
“He has undergone surgery to stop another stroke from happening, but the effects of the AVM will stay with him for the rest of his life.”
The visits to see the teen in London and Surrey have been a major challenge for the family, with Ms Gaskin having to step away from her job as a carer to be with her son.
She has launched a Gofundme page - which has generated £5,000 so far from dozens of donations - to pay for parking, food and fuel for the two-hourlong car journeys.
To make a donation, visit www. gofundme.com/f/4gpb5w-ongoing-expenses.