Inspiring lad hit by brain tumour as a baby now helps others
A YOUNGSTER had barely taken his first steps when he had to undergo major brain surgery which meant he might never walk again.
A seizure at 11-months-old revealed that tot Freddie was born with a brain tumour known as a right-sided temporal lowgrade glioma.
It grew by 10% in less than six months and, at the age of just one, Freddie had to undergo surgery to remove 90% of the tumour.
Removing the full tumour would have left the youngster, from Gosforth, Newcastle paralysed on his left side. But despite the precautions, Freddie’s mum Jenny Mann was faced with the devastating prospect that her baby boy might never recover or ever walk again.
But the little fighter, now aged 12, soon became a keen sports enthusiast and grew up to be healthy and active. And he has even gone on to complete charity running events to raise money for children facing similar challenges.
Jenny, 35, previously told the Sunday Sun: “I am so proud of Freddie, he is absolutely amazing.”
Despite the positive recovery, Freddie has experienced difficulties with processing language, as well as struggling with his memory. Though he can understand lots of what he hears, when language is complex it is harder for him to keep up with the conversation, which has led to him feeling isolated at times.
In 2019, he was diagnosed with a mild acquired language disorder linked to the remaining tumour.
Since then, Freddie has been helped by a psychologist at The Great North Children’s Hospital, funded by Tom’s Trust, which has given him the support he needs. Tom’s Trust provides essential mental health, wellbeing and psychological support to 337 children aged 0-19 and their families in the North East and East of England.
Freddie’s school and family are also being provided with information to help them communicate with him. Despite the huge hurdles Freddie has already had to face in his short life, he has shown great determination and enthusiasm for raising money for the charity which has supported him. And he is now one of Tom’s Trust Ambassadors.
Freddie ran 4km every day in December 2020 as part of Tom’s Trust’s 31 Stars campaign, which saw Guinness World Record breaker Ben Blowes run a marathon a day to raise £31,000 to support 31 children and their families with critical mental health support.
Freddie started his challenge on December 1 and, with friends running along in support on some days, battled wind and rain to complete his mission, raising an inspiring £5,010 in the process.
And now his mum Jenny has also followed in her son’s footsteps to raise money for the charity.
She completed the Great North Run on September 11 for Tom’s Trust – one of 15 runners taking part in the charity’s Run for 5 campaign, which aimed to raise £5,000.
The team smashed their target, raising £6,655, which is enough to provide psychological support to six newly diagnosed children and their families in the North East for a whole year.
Jenny said: “The support we have received from Tom’s Trust has been outstanding – it’s opened a whole world to Freddie and the whole family, and we can’t thank the charity enough for providing this vital support.
“Training for a half marathon might feel like a challenge, but it’s nothing in comparison to the journey so many children and their families have been on.
“I want the world to know how amazing Tom’s Trust is and do what I can to give something back.”