Shortly before my youngest son Harry was born, the hospital discovered he had a large tumour on the base of his spine - called a Sacrococcygeal Teratoma (try learning to say that properly when you haven't slept for 3 days!). 

Amy's care was transferred to the hospitals of central Manchester as both she and Harry would need  specialised treatment during and after the birth. Harry was born two weeks early after Amy was induced, and spent 2 weeks in neonatal intensive care (where he was the biggest baby by at least a factor of two most of the time) before having numerous scans to determine that the tumour was stable and to get the surgeon the information he'd need to be able to operate. 

At 13 days old Harry went through major surgery to remove the tumour, and the part of his spine to which it was attached - hopefully preventing its regrowth. He spent a further week on the Children's Hospital High Dependency Unit (HDU), and following this we were allowed to leave for Christmas (we left the night before Christmas Eve in the end - a very close call!). 

The first month of Harry's life was by far the hardest time in my life, and through it all the staff and volunteers at RMCH were incredible, taking care of Harry and us whenever we needed it, lifting our spirits and most importantly giving me a healthy happy son. Harry has check ups every few months to check for signs that the tumours coming back, but so far everything looks good. 

We can't thank the hospital enough - by doing this ridiculous bike ride I'm really hoping to raise enough money to allow them to continue going above and beyond, providing the little extras that make such difficult times that bit easier to cope with. Things like the light show in the ultrasound department, to let us distract Harry while he has his regular scans, or the toys and games in the outpatients waiting area. They're an amazing place and they deserve to be supported.

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