Now, four-month-old Melody Aggett is fighting for her life after what looked like a simple cold turned out to be something far more serious which is a rare and aggressive form of leukemia.
Her parents, Rachel-Elizabeth Hewitt and Kevin Aggett, first took her to Poole Hospital in Dorset, where doctors suspected bronchiolitis. But when Melody’s breathing got worse and she went 12 hours without a wet nappy, they rushed her to Southampton General Hospital.
There, after several tests , one of which was to check her breathing , came the heartbreaking diagnosis:
a fast-spreading blood cancer, called acute myeloid leukemia (AML), which normally occurs in older adults, not tiny babies.
Treatment started straight away: Melody had a platelet transfusion and spent 30 days in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, including two weeks on a ventilator and two rounds of chemotherapy. She was later transferred to Great Ormond Street Hospital in London for more specialist care, including a bone marrow procedure. Through it all, her mum continued to breastfeed her to help comfort her.
Even with all these tubes, tests, and days in the hospital, Melody has remained incredibly brave, smiling, giggling, enjoying time with her siblings – Felicity, age 2; Liberty, age 6; and 10-year-old twins Tom and Iz.
Melody has just begun immunotherapy, which may extend for many months. Her latest bone marrow results were so unusual that her medical team is now in consultation with experts worldwide to determine what further actions to take. The future remains uncertain, and her road will be long.
Everyone is hoping she gets the treatment she needs, and makes a full, strong recovery.
