The family snapshot that hid deadly secret

Mysterious eye glow was the clue to little Eithan’s dark secret

A CHERISHED family snap captured a baby boy’s hidden tumour.

The eerie white reflection in this adorable image of eight-month-old Eithan Blair is actually a tell-tale sign of malignant cancer.

Mum Emma Johnston, 22, said her blood ran cold when it was confirmed the white pupil meant Eithan had a rare form of the disease.

He was rushed to hospital for chemo, but doctors could not begin treatment after discovering the tot also had a hidden heart problem.

A LITTLE boy’s cancer was caught after he developed an eerie white glow in his right eye.

Eithan Blair was a picture of gurgling good health, but the white reflection in his eye was a sign of a deadly secret.

He was harbouring a potentially deadly tumour which threatened to blind or kill him.

It was only spotted when mum Emma Johnston and painter and decorator dad Graeme Blair, 26, noticed the shimmer as Eithan looked up at them as he played on the lounge floor.

That chance occurrence sparked a terrifying journey that was to see brave Eithan battle not one but TWO life-threatening conditions.

Not only would he be diagnosed with cancer, but doctors would also uncover a previously unkown serious heart defect.

It was only after the initial cancer diagnosis that Emma, 22, looked back at treasured family snaps and realised the worrying white area in Eithan’s eye had been right in front of them all along.

“We were staring cancer in the face and didn’t even see it,” she said. “I thought it was a reflection of the camera flash.”

Retail assistant Emma, of Dunoon, was referred by a GP to a hospital eye specialist who discovered a tumour in the bottom of his right eye.

Eithan was only eight months old when the shock diagnosis was delivered.

“I felt my mind racing and was overcome with worry,” she said. “One minute we had a lovely healthy boy and the next, we were told he had a suspicious tumour.

“He was so young. I started to fear the worst. We could only pray we had got it in time.”

They were told the tell-tale white reflection meant the mass was most likely to be malignant.

As such, early treatment was vital to give little Eithan the best chance of survival.

“I wept at what lay ahead of him at such a young age,” said mum.