Family's life turned 'upside down' after thinking child had 'ear infection'

Ivy-Rose was described by her aunt as ‘lovely and kind’

Ivy-Rose Jones, two, of Bidston, Wirral(Image: Provided)

A mother and aunt were left shocked after taking a child to hospital believing she had an ear infection. Lisa Jones, 32, from Bidston in Wirral, regularly looks after her niece Ivy-Rose Jones to help her sister Leanne.

Lisa is a paramedic. When she went shopping with her niece last Thursday, everything seemed fine for the two-year-old. As a result, she was surprised to learn the next day that Ivy-Rose was not her. I’m normal.

‌

Speaking to the ECHO, she said: “Ivy-Rose is very intelligent. She was walking ahead of time. In terms of speech, she can have full conversations. She is a lovely girl with very kind manners. She is so loving, so well behaved.

READ MORE: Piano’s Brad Kella was in a ‘dark place’ after ‘unexpected’ tragedyREAD MORE: ‘Sophisticated’ cars block sidewalks in front of multi-storey car park

“She didn’t show any symptoms. On Thursday, I picked her up and went shopping with her and she ate some cotton candy. It was just normal. Then my sister called me and said: I went to get her out of bed and she is staggering. I thought, maybe she has a viral infection or is just a little weak, a general childhood illness.

‌

“I went down to check on her. There was nothing really bouncing. I thought maybe it had something to do with her ears. An infection can really throw you off balance. Sometimes a coordination problem could be meningitis – it causes a fever and makes you a little lethargic.”

They called an ambulance to take Ivy-Rose to the hospital, just in case. While they were waiting, Lisa had second thoughts, suggesting they should go to the care center. An ambulance pulled up soon after, with doctors at the hospital doing a brain scan as a precaution. Lisa and Leanne were shocked to discover that Ivy-Rose had a large brain tumor, the majority of her brain.

Lisa said: “Within an hour, after thinking she had an ear infection, we were getting the blue light for Alder Hey. When she arrived Alder Heythey did an MRI on her while she was sedated. The tumor filled his brain. It was a large tumor for a two-year-old child. They hadn’t seen a tumor this big at such a young age.”

‌

Ivy-Rose is in Alder Hey receiving treatment (Image: Provided)

The sisters agreed that Ivy-Rose should have surgery to try and remove the tumor, although there was a chance she would die if she had a bleed on her brain during the operation. Fortunately, she survived, but had to remain in the hospital. Lisa said: “They removed 85% of the tumor but a significant amount is still attached. They had to cut the muscles in her neck.

“She didn’t come back as the same little girl. She can’t hold her head up, she can’t focus with her eyes, she’s lost her appetite. It is a very aggressive cancer, she will undergo chemotherapy and radiotherapy.”

‌

Lisa has now created a GoFundMe. She says the money will help her niece and sister during this time. Lisa believes Ivy-Rose may need a wheelchair due to her condition, while Leanne is finding it difficult to support Ivy-Rose in Alder Hey and her family in Wirral.

She said: “I’m doing this because my sister has two other children, Lexie-John and Aliya-John. She has been hospitalized since last Friday. She couldn’t get home to see her other children. I’m the only one who drives, but I work full time and have two children. It’s just about getting help and support and some sort of transportation to and from the hospital.”

Ivy-Rose ‘didn’t have any symptoms’ (Image: Provided)

‌

Lisa is delighted with the reaction to her campaign, but is still struggling to come to terms with what has happened. She said: “It’s amazing. Communities really come together. It’s nice to think that there are people out there who are trying to help. Everyone who meets her is so shocked.

“It’s just me and my sister. We have no other siblings. We are a very united family. It’s just horrible what happened to her. Our lives turned upside down overnight. She was such a happy go lucky girl.

“Looking back, I’m really glad we didn’t go to the fulfillment center as we could have been turned away. It’s so scary to think she had no symptoms. We have no history of childhood cancer in our family. It’s been so unexpected. I worry that this may have gone unnoticed for too long. It’s so fatal and we had no signs.

‌

“It’s so bizarre and surreal how something can turn your life upside down in the blink of an eye. I know Ivy-Rose will need a lot of care now.” You can learn more about fundraising here.