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Boy, 9, the ‘epitome of health’ receives shock cancer diagnosis six months after suffering a nosebleed
Read on for a full list of symptoms of Sammy's cancer - from looking pale to bruising and a rash
A SPORTY nine-year-old described as the “epitome of health” received a shock diagnosis after suffering a "massive" nosebleed.
Sammy Balmforth, from Biddulph, Staffordshire, was “born with a rugby ball in his hand” and has been kickboxing since he was four.
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But his health took a turn in June 2024 when “massive lumps” appeared under Sammy’s skin, bruises would form just “from holding his hand” and he suffered with a “massive” nosebleed that saw him rushed to hospital.
Sammy was diagnosed with a rare autoimmune condition affecting his blood.
But blood tests results from January this year came back positive for leukaemia – and he was officially diagnosed on January 31.
The diagnosis has been a shock to Sammy’s parents, Barney, 44, and Nicki, 42, but they have praised their “strong” son for remaining “positive”.
Read more on leukaemia
Family friends launched a page to help the family, which has since raised almost £23,000 to date.
Nicki, a driving instructor, said: “He’s the epitome of health.
“He’s so strong but it’s also made it quite shocking because we weren’t expecting this.”
Barney, who served with the British Armed Forces and now works in financial services, said: “Sammy can do 100 burpees and it doesn’t seem to faze him, he can do press-ups like no one’s business."
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“I keep saying this will be his origin story before he becomes a superhero."
Sammy has enjoyed playing sports throughout his childhood and was described by his mother as “a fit, healthy, energetic, sporty, strong little boy”.
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“He’s massively into his rugby, he was literally born with a rugby ball in his hand and he’s been kickboxing since the age of four,” Nicki said.
But in June 2024, Nicki said he began to experience some strange health issues.
“He had a pinprick rash all over his body, he was coming out in bruises and lumps under his skin literally just from touching him,” she said.
“Even from holding his hand, he was coming out in massive bruises.”
Sammy was diagnosed with immune thrombocytopenia (ITP), a rare autoimmune condition causing low platelet count which prevents the blood from clotting properly.
On June 5, Sammy suffered with a “massive nose bleed”, leading his doctors to put him on a dose of steroids to boost his platelet count.
His condition appeared to be improving when in October, the rash returned.
“He had bleeding gums when he was brushing his teeth, he had a nose bleed,” Nicki recalled.
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The symptoms of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia
Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) is a type of blood cancer.
It starts from white blood cells called lymphocytes in the bone marrow.
Anyone can get it, but it is most common in younger people, especially children aged four and under.
Symptoms often mimic other conditions, but kids might experience:
- Feeling weak or tired
- Flu-like symptoms
- A high temperature (fever)
- Picking up or not being able to shake off infections, such as coughs and colds
- Bruising and bleeding easily
- Weight loss
- Swollen lymph nodes
- Bone or joint pain
- Breathlessness
- Feeling full
- Looking pale or washed out
Some patients will also get a rash that looks like tiny red, purple or brown dots that don't turn white when pressed.
Almost 90 per cent of children under 15 with ALL will survive for five years or more after being diagnosed.
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The couple took Sammy to A&E at the Royal Stoke University Hospital, where tests showed his platelet count was extremely low.
He underwent a series of blood tests but the results came back as normal and Sammy was treated with another dose of steroids.
Sammy to go back to his old self, according to his parents, and he continued receiving regular blood tests to monitor his condition.
However, a set of results from January this year came back positive for leukaemia.
A lumbar puncture and tests on his bone marrow confirmed that Sammy acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) by the end of the month.
“It’s happened really quickly,” Barney said.
Nicki added: “This is the kind of thing that happens to other people, it’s the kind of thing you read about on the news, something you donate to after seeing a fundraiser.
“You never think it will happen to you and now it has.”
She also said it is unclear whether Sammy’s condition, ITP, “potentially triggered” the leukaemia or whether the cancer was presenting as the condition.
Brave boy
He has now started a weekly course of chemotherapy and will probably spend the next two years undergoing various treatments.
“The hardest part is being able to answer Sammy’s questions, we’re trying to work it all out and explain it to him as well,” Barney said.
Despite the challenges ahead, Nicki said Sammy is “positive” and dealing with his diagnosis “very well”.
“He makes everyone laugh, he’s had the nurses in stitches,” she said.
Barney’s fellow army comrade, Ross Hawkesford, 45, launched a GoFundMe page to help support the family upon the news of Sammy’s diagnosis, raising over £22,900 so far.
“To have such generous and kind and lovely people around us is completely humbling,” Nicki said.
Sammy has received messages of support from high-profile rugby players, such as Ollie Lawrence, Finn Russell and Mark Wilson.
“Because he’s so passionate about rugby, hearing from people who he idolises is really inspirational for him – it’s given him the confidence and determination to keep going,” Nicki said.
Read More on The Sun
To find out more, visit the fundraiser for Sammy and his family .
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