‘Doctor’s told me my daughter’s stage four cancer was constipation’

‘She was crying with pain curled up in bed,’ remembers Claire Formby, mother to Ella Formby-Smith, who’s just three years old.

Claire, a 38-year-old NHS worker, feels let down by the care given to Ella at Warrington hospital because she claims they missed her daughter’s cancer.

Doctors at Warrington Hospital told Claire Ella was simply constipated when the three-year-old actually had stage four neuroblastoma – a rare and aggressive cancer.

Claire, an NHS worker, said Ella was checked over three times before being diagnosed, having been back and forth to the doctors since her birth because of stomach issues.

Little Ella is now having chemotherapy.

Claire, from Runcorn, Cheshire, said: ‘We’ve been told she could have been born with this.

‘I’m just feeling so let down with the number of times we’ve been back and forth.

‘I just can’t get my head around how it’s not been detected in three years of going to hospital with stomach problems.

‘She’s been diagnosed as lactose and dairy intolerant and every other time we’ve been we were told its constipation or a viral infection.’

When Ella’s issues became more severe in May, 2023, prior to her diagnosis, she began to spend more time in Warrington Hospital.

When her condition continued to deteriorate, Claire insisted further investigations were done, rather than it be dismissed as constipation or lactose intolerance.

Ella was then referred to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, where she underwent an ultrasound.

The ultrasound revealed a large mass at the back of Ella’s stomach – and after an MRI the following week, she was tragically diagnosed with neuroblastoma.

Now, Ella is on her seventh round of chemotherapy and is facing surgery, a stem cell transplant, radiotherapy and immunotherapy.

‘We got to the point where she was that bad and I wanted something done,’ said Claire.

‘From when she was born, she had problems with her stomach. I don’t understand why they didn’t send her for scan with her history and how much she suffered with stomach problems.

‘It gradually got worse over four weeks until she was crying with pain curled up in bed.

‘We took her to the doctor and they said it was viral at first, then we took her to the doctor again and they were sending her for celiac tests.

‘Gradually it got worse again so I took her to Warrington hospital, but they wouldn’t do bloods – they made us wait two weeks to have bloods done.

‘We went back again and they were trying to get water sample off of her to tell us it was an infection but I refused.

‘It was only lucky that someone in Warrington had worked at Alder Hey and came down to see her – because she wouldn’t wee they sent her to Alder Hey.

‘As soon as she went to Alder Hey it was 100 miles an hour – in the early hours of Saturday they took her down for ultrasound which was done instantly and picked up a mass in the back of her stomach.

‘She has chemotherapy on the tenth day for 80 days. It’s up and down at the moment. It’s good days and bad days.

‘She’s got no energy and no mobility at all for her to run around or play, it’s taken it right out her.

‘She’s amazing and was active and bouncing around all the time, just a happy three-year-old who went to nursery – she loved nursery, so it’s literally just changed her whole lifestyle.’

A spokesperson for Warrington and Halton Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said: ‘The Trust is very sorry to hear about Ella’s diagnosis at the regional specialist children’s hospital.

‘An investigation into the care provided to Ella during her hospital admissions at the Trust is being progressed.

‘We appreciate that this is a very difficult time for Ella’s family, and we will do all that we can to support Ella’s family during the investigation, ensuring that all findings are shared as soon as possible.’

Claire is now trying to raise money for Ella’s care.

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