‘We don’t want any regrets’
BATTLING Bradley Lowery’s mum has spoken of her heartbreak at the thought of her son’s death in a loving post.
Gemma Lowery shared a snap of the cheeky five-year-old smiling after a day out at Flamingo Land.
In a message tugging on the heart strings of Bradley’s thousands of followers, she said the family were still struggling to come to terms with the his terminal cancer diagnosis.
She said: “We are still trying to get our head round that treatment has not worked again.
“As a parent it’s heartbreaking to hear, the thought of losing my baby is unbearable.
“We are getting to make amazing memories that will last me a lifetime but I’d swap it in a heart beat if I could let my little boy grow up to be a healthy young man.”
Gemma and her husband Carl have shared the journey of the Blackhall Colliery boy’s battle with neuroblastoma.
Having beaten the cruel illness once before as a tot, in June 2016 the family were told his cancer had returned.
Just months later, in December 2016, the family were given the devastating news that his illness was terminal.
Despite the diagnosis, the Lowerys pinned hopes on a last-ditch pioneering treatment which they were told earlier this month wasn’t working. Gemma said: “The news was just heartbreaking, we are just trying to get on with things really, we want to try and have some fun as a family.”
The family say Bradley was being considered for a pioneering trial at Great Ormond Street hospital in London but they accept the treatment is highly unlikely to save his life. He will visit the specialist children’s hospital on Monday for further tests ahead of this latest treatment. Gemma added: “We want to try it, we just don’t want to have any regrets but otherwise it’s about making him comfortable and making memories.” Since it emerged his condition wa s terminal, Bradley has appeared as a mascot for his beloved Sunderland AFC, become best pals with his hero Jermain Defoe and in the lead up to Christmas 2016 received more than 250,000 cards from well-wishers. His parents have been focusing on creating magical memories for the little lad and have visited the Harry Potter Studios, Disneyland Paris and the Grand National at Aintree. More than 200,000 people have been following the youngster’s journey online and his family have been praised for raising awareness of childhood cancer.