Tommy was nine at the time he decided to wish to have a virtual reality gaming party after he tried a Virtual Reality (VR) headset for the first time on Brighton pier and was elated. In VR, you immerse in everything around you and that was amazing for him; he coped with only his one arm very quickly.

In hospital, I noticed that gaming filled his mind; he didn't have any room to be fearful. It took him out of himself. Many people came into the ward with art and school activities, but many of the young people weren't interested in those - they wanted to game. I realised it was because that outside interaction could be too much for them. Gaming was purely them in their mind, using their imagination. It was an escape and provided excitement.

He used his iPad in hospital to game and the play therapist had to be up to speed with gaming as that's what all the children were into; she followed their lead. Gaming was authentic to them, it took them out of their body.

I was never a mum that let the children game but when Tommy was in hospital I realised that wasn't the right thing to do. The walls got smaller in the hospital, but gaming expanded them again. Seeing Tommy enjoy gaming throughout his treatment really changed my mind about it. When he first went into hospital I restricted his gaming, but that was wrong. It was a complete escape for him: it was not numbing him but filling him.