Mother saves daughter after GP mistakes brain tumour for hay fever

Laura Roberts12 April 2012

A mother saved her young daughter after doctors misdiagnosed a life-threatening brain tumour as hay fever.

Keira Zgraja was two years old when she started to suffer from bouts of nausea, vomiting and weakness along the left side of her body.

Despite weekly trips to her GP surgery in Billericay, Essex, doctors dismissed her mother Maddy's concerns saying the toddler had hay fever and a blocked tear duct.

But Ms Zgraja, 23, grew increasingly concerned and after eight months of persisting, Keira was referred to Basildon Hospital where blood tests and an MRI scan revealed she had a large tumour on her brain stem.

Ms Zgraja said: "I kept going back to them because I knew something was very wrong. She was losing a lot of weight because she was not eating or drinking properly.

"After a lot of pushing from me, the doctors agreed to send Keira for tests at the hospital - within 20 minutes they said she had a tumour.

"It was so frustrating. There were times I doubted myself, because the doctors said I was over-reacting."

Following her diagnosis, in April last year, Keira went to Great Ormond Street Hospital for an operation to remove the tumour.

The operation was a partial success but, due to the location of the growth, doctors were unable to remove it all and Keira's family have been told she must live with the remains of the tumour for the rest of her life.

Keira, who is undergoing an intensive treatment programme of chemotherapy, is now four and is due to start at Sunnymede Junior School in Billericay this month.

Ms Zgraja wants to highlight her daughter's case to prevent any other families going through the same ordeal. She said: "When I found out about the tumour, my whole world fell apart. Despite all of the tests and the trips to hospital, she is still cheerful and manages to raise a smile.

"I want to raise awareness about brain tumours in children and urge parents to trust their instincts, even if they keep on hitting brick walls, like I did.

"I want to thank Sunnymede pre-school owner Jenny Green for helping to get Keira diagnosed and Basildon Hospital for all its support."

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