Serious condition behind child's everyday symptoms discovered after mum pushed for test

When Millie Holmes first started complaining of a stomach ache, her family never could have imagined it meant something sinister.

But alarm bells started to ring when she started getting nosebleeds and passing blood in her urine, prompting her mum Gemma to take her to a GP.

Medics said the six-year-old had a water infection and she was given antibiotics to take home.

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But months went by and Millie’s condition still hadn’t improved. By March this year, she was off her food and had lost a lot of weight.

Mum-of-four Gemma, from Droylsden, knew something was seriously wrong and returned to their doctor again. This time, she pushed for blood tests to be taken.

They were sent to Tameside General Hospital where Millie had a routine check and a large lump was found in her stomach.

The family were immediately transferred to Manchester Children’s Hospital and remained there for two weeks for more checks.

Further testing confirmed their worst fears and Millie was diagnosed with an extremely rare cancer – and it was stage 4, meaning it had spread from its original location.

“I was in tears for days,” Gemma said. “I’m still in tears now. You don’t get time to process it, you just have to carry on.”

After having symptoms for over a year, Millie was diagnosed with clear cell sarcoma of the kidney, a very rare type of kidney cancer.

Considered to be more aggressive than other renal tumours, clear cell sarcoma of the kidney has a tendency to spread to the bones and other organs including the lungs, brain and soft tissues of the body.

CCSK tumours also have a higher chance of returning compared to other paediatric renal cancers.

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