Boy sent home with nose cream to treat a 'virus' now has just months to live after doctors discover his symptoms were caused by a brain tumour, A distraught father has criticised doctors after they repeatedly failed to diagnose his son’s brain tumour after he suffered nose bleeds for four months.
Ten-year-old Stewart Sheridan had visited his GP surgery regularly over a number of months after suffering from severe nose bleeds.
But time after time he was sent home and on his last visit to his family GP he was prescribed with an anti-viral nose cream with doctors at his local surgery believing he had a virus.
But just days later his condition worsened and his father, Michael, rushed him to hospital where a scan revealed that he had a malignant brain tumour.
Now medics are saying he has just months to live with a serious grade three tumour that is inoperable.The youngster was first taken to see his GP in November last year after he began suffering from persistent nose bleeds.
But over a four-month period Stewart was repeatedly sent home without referral to specialists with the GP telling his family he had ‘excess blood’.
On February 2 this year, he was sent home from school with a bloody nose and dizziness and was suffering hallucinations, diarrhoea and vomiting.
When he arrived home his father said his son began to behave ‘strangely’ punching the air and speaking out loud.The same evening Mr Sheridan, 46, took his son to their family GP at the Ribblesdale Medical Practice in Bury, Greater Manchester.
But the GP, who is said to have been ‘running behind’ on his appointments prescribed the youngster with a viral cream for his nostrils to stem the blood flow.
Three days later Stewart complained of a headache and wobbly legs and was again behaving unusually when Mr Sheridan decided to take him to hospital.
The youngster was given a CT scan which revealed a brain tumour.
He was taken by ambulance to Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, where he remains.
Doctors now say he has just months left to live. He is currently heavily sedated with his mother Kelly and his grandmother Carole Sheehan by his bedside.
His devastated father, Michael, has now made a formal complaint to the GP practice saying his sons’ symptoms should have been picked up earlier.
He said: ‘That night when my son was unwell I took him to the doctor, told him the symptoms and he said it was a virus and gave me a cream to put up his nostrils.
‘He should have picked up that it was something more serious, but he didn’t.
‘It makes me feel very annoyed. He did not do his job properly.
‘That night he (the GP) was running late, with his appointments behind schedule, and I feel like he rushed to get it done.’
Stewart now faces intense radiotherapy sessions at specialist cancer hospital, The Christie, to shrink the tumour, but medics fear the treatment will only delay the inevitable.
Mr Sheridan, added: ‘They don’t know how long he has had the tumour – or whether the nose bleeds were connected to it – but it is right in the middle of his brain which means it is inoperable.
‘The radiotherapy will just shrink it, but the doctors said he has months to live.
‘I asked them if he had years, weeks or days left and they said months. We’re all devastated.
'He’s still out of it, even when he’s awake he doesn’t know what’ s going on. When they told us, I had to go out of the room, I couldn’t believe it.
Mr Sheridan urged other parents to obtain a second opinion on their child’s symptoms.
He said: ‘I just want to let parents know, so that if anyone is in the same situation or going through anything similar they know to take their child to a hospital and get them checked over.
‘Everyone is so worried about him – his friends, our family, even people who do not really know him. I am so cut up about it.’
Stewart’s grandmother Mrs Sheehan said: ‘I haven’t slept properly since we found out. I haven’t stopped crying. We’re just hoping for a miracle.’
Mr Sheridan made a formal complaint to Ribblesdale Medical Practice on February 6 and was called back by the practice manager four days later.
He was told the GP involved was ‘devastated’ and offered to apologise, but Mr Sheridan declined to speak to the GP.
A spokesman for Ribblesdale Medical Practice said: ‘This is obviously a very difficult time for the patient, and our thoughts are with him and his family.
‘However, we are unable to comment further due to patient confidentiality.’
Medical director for Lancashire and Greater Manchester at NHS England, Raj Patel, said he was awaiting a formal complaint from the family.
He said: ‘We would like to offer thoughts to this patient and their family, at what must be a difficult time for them.
‘We have not received any formal complaint regarding this patient’s care, however we take complaints about the services we commission very seriously, and would be happy to speak to the family about the care and treatment that the patient has received from their GP practice.’
Ten-year-old Stewart Sheridan had visited his GP surgery regularly over a number of months after suffering from severe nose bleeds.
But time after time he was sent home and on his last visit to his family GP he was prescribed with an anti-viral nose cream with doctors at his local surgery believing he had a virus.
But just days later his condition worsened and his father, Michael, rushed him to hospital where a scan revealed that he had a malignant brain tumour.
Now medics are saying he has just months to live with a serious grade three tumour that is inoperable.The youngster was first taken to see his GP in November last year after he began suffering from persistent nose bleeds.
But over a four-month period Stewart was repeatedly sent home without referral to specialists with the GP telling his family he had ‘excess blood’.
On February 2 this year, he was sent home from school with a bloody nose and dizziness and was suffering hallucinations, diarrhoea and vomiting.
When he arrived home his father said his son began to behave ‘strangely’ punching the air and speaking out loud.The same evening Mr Sheridan, 46, took his son to their family GP at the Ribblesdale Medical Practice in Bury, Greater Manchester.
But the GP, who is said to have been ‘running behind’ on his appointments prescribed the youngster with a viral cream for his nostrils to stem the blood flow.
Three days later Stewart complained of a headache and wobbly legs and was again behaving unusually when Mr Sheridan decided to take him to hospital.
The youngster was given a CT scan which revealed a brain tumour.
He was taken by ambulance to Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, where he remains.
Doctors now say he has just months left to live. He is currently heavily sedated with his mother Kelly and his grandmother Carole Sheehan by his bedside.
His devastated father, Michael, has now made a formal complaint to the GP practice saying his sons’ symptoms should have been picked up earlier.
He said: ‘That night when my son was unwell I took him to the doctor, told him the symptoms and he said it was a virus and gave me a cream to put up his nostrils.
‘He should have picked up that it was something more serious, but he didn’t.
‘It makes me feel very annoyed. He did not do his job properly.
‘That night he (the GP) was running late, with his appointments behind schedule, and I feel like he rushed to get it done.’
Stewart now faces intense radiotherapy sessions at specialist cancer hospital, The Christie, to shrink the tumour, but medics fear the treatment will only delay the inevitable.
Mr Sheridan, added: ‘They don’t know how long he has had the tumour – or whether the nose bleeds were connected to it – but it is right in the middle of his brain which means it is inoperable.
‘The radiotherapy will just shrink it, but the doctors said he has months to live.
‘I asked them if he had years, weeks or days left and they said months. We’re all devastated.
'He’s still out of it, even when he’s awake he doesn’t know what’ s going on. When they told us, I had to go out of the room, I couldn’t believe it.
Mr Sheridan urged other parents to obtain a second opinion on their child’s symptoms.
He said: ‘I just want to let parents know, so that if anyone is in the same situation or going through anything similar they know to take their child to a hospital and get them checked over.
‘Everyone is so worried about him – his friends, our family, even people who do not really know him. I am so cut up about it.’
Stewart’s grandmother Mrs Sheehan said: ‘I haven’t slept properly since we found out. I haven’t stopped crying. We’re just hoping for a miracle.’
Mr Sheridan made a formal complaint to Ribblesdale Medical Practice on February 6 and was called back by the practice manager four days later.
He was told the GP involved was ‘devastated’ and offered to apologise, but Mr Sheridan declined to speak to the GP.
A spokesman for Ribblesdale Medical Practice said: ‘This is obviously a very difficult time for the patient, and our thoughts are with him and his family.
‘However, we are unable to comment further due to patient confidentiality.’
Medical director for Lancashire and Greater Manchester at NHS England, Raj Patel, said he was awaiting a formal complaint from the family.
He said: ‘We would like to offer thoughts to this patient and their family, at what must be a difficult time for them.
‘We have not received any formal complaint regarding this patient’s care, however we take complaints about the services we commission very seriously, and would be happy to speak to the family about the care and treatment that the patient has received from their GP practice.’
