Mum says doctors missed her daughter’s stage 4 cancer and said ‘it’s constipation’

A mum claims doctors missed her daughter’s cancer and instead told her it was just constipation, before she was given her devastating diagnosis.

Claire Formby, 38, says she feels let down by the care given to her three-year-old daughter Ella Formby-Smith by Warrington Hospital, which is now facing a probe over the claims.

The NHS worker said Ella was checked by doctors three times before she was diagnosed with stage four neuroblastoma, a rare and aggressive cancer that mostly affects babies and young children.

The cancer develops from specialised nerve cells left behind from a baby’s development in the womb, according to the NHS, and is most commonly occurs in one of the adrenal glands above the kidneys, or in the nerve tissue that runs alongside the spinal cord in the neck, chest, tummy or pelvis.

Ms Formby said she had been back and forth to doctors as Ella had been suffering with stomach issues since birth, but her symptoms became more severe in March 2023.

The three-year-old began to spend more time in Warrington hospital, but Ms Formby claims she was initially told that Ella was simply constipated or had a viral infection.

Ms Formby, 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 it’s constipation or a viral infection.”

After her condition continued to get worse, she insisted Ella be sent for further investigations which saw her referred to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital.

Here she underwent an ultrasound which revealed a large mass at the back of her stomach. An MRI scan the following week then tragically diagnosed her with stage four neuroblastoma.

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

“I was just told it was a viral infection until we got to the point where she was that bad and I wanted something done. 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 a 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 an ultrasound which was done instantly and picked up a mass in the back of her stomach.”

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

The 38-year-old added: “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 GoFundMe page has now been set up to try and raise money for Ella’s care, with a target of £25,000. More than £22,000 has already been donated to support the family who say they are “overwhelmed and grateful for your kindness and generosity”.

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.”