Star pupil Matthew fights back after leukaemia
A TEENAGER from Widnes who fought his way back to his studies after suffering from leukaemia is celebrating after aceing his GCSEs.
Matthew Pennington was 13 and a rising Tranmere Rovers junior star when he was given the devastating news.
He missed lessons during treatment and had to spend much of the last year trying to catch up.
But the Wade Deacon High School pupil, who is still having chemotherapy until October, achieved brilliant results in the exams, gaining three A*s, three As and five Bs.
Matthew, now 16, said: “I’m made up with them. It’s everything I needed for college and more. I missed most of Year 9, and for some of Year 10 I was able to come in, see my mates and try to get familiar again with being at school.
“In Year 11, I had to work really hard to catch up, but the teachers helped me a lot.
“Everyone has been saying they’re proud of me and that it’s a big achievement after missing a lot of school.”
Matthew’s results mean he has secured a place at Cronton College to study maths, geography, biology and chemistry at A-level.
He has also won a coveted scholarship to the college for science and maths.
Matthew lives at home with younger sister Anna, 13, dad Steven, 50, and mum, Lisa, 46, who said she was hugely proud of him.
She said: “In Matthew’s school they start GCSEs at Year 9 and he missed the majority of the year. He started going in for the odd day but it was more to see his friends, which the hospital encouraged him to do.
“He was in and out and went back for the start of Year 10, then he had a scare when we thought the leukaemia had returned, so he had to wait and have more tests.
“He’s been at the hospital every other week for blood tests so even when he was back at school he would miss some of Wednesday.”
Lisa said it took a month and several hospital appointments for Matthew to be diagnosed after he became ill.
She said: “He was vomiting at school which he never really told us about. One day he came to me for a cuddle and I thought it was unusual. I was stroking his head and noticed behind his ears was very puffy. I thought ‘that’s not right’.”
Doctors at Whiston hospital initially though Matthew was dehydrated because of his football training for Tranmere.
After repeated hospital visits and numerous tests for cancer, he was eventually given a diagnosis after doctors checked his bone marrow.
Lisa said: “He only cried twice, once when he realised he couldn’t do his football and when he lost his hair. But he’s very mentally strong – and stubborn!
“I’m so proud of him, but he’s Mr Cool and he hates a fuss!”