Mother questioned by doctors about her baby’s bruises – only to find out he has leukaemia

A mother was questioned by doctors about her baby’s abuse after he suffered mysterious bruises – before a blood test confirmed he had leukaemia.

Beth Reilly, 23, became concerned last October when her son Bailey Kilbane, now 16 months old, developed strange bruises that didn’t heal after three weeks, along with flu-like symptoms.

She says her son was “so happy and smiling” that GPs and hospital doctors said he was fine six times.

At one point, doctors even asked if she was abusing her son until a blood test changed everything.

It turned out that little Bailey had leukemia – cancer of the white blood cells.

Beth, from Wallasey, Merseyside, said: “People always say you know when your child is not well and at that very moment this week I felt it.

“He smiled, but I could just tell something was wrong – you just looked at him and he looked right through you.

“I think back on the experience often and it was horrible being questioned about abusing your child – but I know they had to.”

Beth hopes her experience will encourage people to force doctors to get tested.

After being rejected by doctors several times, Beth insisted and asked for a blood test.

She recalled: “In the end I said I wouldn’t go unless they did a blood test and they agreed to keep him overnight and do tests in the morning.

“And a few hours later the doctor came back with his head down and some other nurses behind her — that’s when I heard about his B-cell lymphoblastic leukemia.”

Lymphoblastic leukemia is a rare cancer that affects around 790 people in the UK each year.

Bailey has already had a bone marrow biopsy, three rounds of chemotherapy and an epidural every two weeks. He will also have heart scans throughout his life.

She added: “Bailey is still very happy, but it’s just been hard for him – and it shows. We still deny that he is really sick and that it has been months.

“He definitely got a push, he’s exhausted. He has trouble eating so now he is mainly fed through a feeding tube – it’s just not what we’re used to.

“All his young years that he should have spent having fun and being a kid, he’s now doing treatment instead.

“It’s sad because he just started kindergarten and loved it, but I had to get him out now.”

Beth wants other parents to trust their instincts, even when doctors can’t see the signs of what they are.