Hamish’s Story

Hamish Hey’s journey began in June 2011 when he was just 2 years old.

His first diagnosis was a metastatic alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma – a rare and aggressive soft tissue cancer. Hamish underwent months of gruelling treatment, comprising intensive chemotherapy and radiotherapy, together with a pioneering surgery called a rotationplasty,  resulting in him having a prosthetic limb.

During the following few years Hamish miraculously fought on, living life as best a little boy should, but with regular checkups and extensive routine medication, primarily to control the longterm side effects of the treatment.

Then tragically, in March 2016, now aged 7, Hamish was diagnosed with a DIPG. An aggressive, inoperable tumour within the brainstem, for which there is no cure. This diagnosis was completely unrelated to that in 2011. He underwent 30 sessions of radiotherapy, but this treatment was only palliative to allow him a little more time with his loving family and friends.

Hamish passed away peacefully in his mother’s arms at home on the 20th February 2017.