A nine-year-old girl has been diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer—just three months after doctors dismissed her wrist pain as a sprain.
Maisie-Leigh, from Preston, Lancashire, has begun intensive treatment for Ewing sarcoma, starting with nine rounds of chemotherapy, followed by surgery, then another five rounds, with regular scans throughout.
Her mother, Aimee Marsden, 30, told MailOnline that she took Maisie-Leigh to A&E in October last year after she complained of wrist pain following a bike crash two weeks earlier. Doctors diagnosed it as a sprain, unaware of the devastating truth.
But over the next two months, Maisie-Leigh endured sleepless nights, often letting out an “almighty scream-cry” of pain, her mother said. By the New Year, her arm had become extremely swollen, prompting another visit to A&E. A month later, they received the devastating diagnosis.
After just two days of chemotherapy, the once energetic nine-year-old is already feeling the toll. Her mother shared: “Usually, she’s running around, bouncing off the walls, playing outside. But now, she’s struggling to walk, complaining that her legs hurt. We’ve had to get her a wheelchair because she’s already finding it so difficult.”
As a child with ADHD, Maisie-Leigh was always full of energy. But now, her mother said, “She’s just lying on the sofa. Before, she’d be bouncing off it… it’s like watching her fade away.”
Maisie-Leigh’s cancer battle comes after a lifetime of health struggles. Born prematurely, she was later diagnosed with audio and visual processing disorder, ADHD, and chronic asthma, which has led to multiple hospitalizations. In one frightening episode, a case of chickenpox left her close to cardiac arrest.
Her mother, who has launched a GoFundMe page to help cover transport costs to and from the hospital, as well as essentials to keep Maisie-Leigh comfortable—such as hats for her now bald head—shared: “Since the day she was born, it’s been one thing after another. She’s never had a break.”
Maisie-Leigh, from Preston, Lancashire, has begun intensive treatment for Ewing sarcoma, starting with nine rounds of chemotherapy, followed by surgery, then an additional five rounds, with regular scans throughout.
After just two days of chemotherapy, Maisie-Leigh is already exhausted, her mother, Aimee Marsden, 30, told MailOnline: “She’s just lying on the sofa—before, she’d be bouncing off it… it’s like watching her fade away.”
Maisie-Leigh (pictured before her diagnosis) was diagnosed with a rare bone cancer, Ewing sarcoma, at the end of January—just three months after doctors dismissed her wrist pain as a sprain.
Maisie-Leigh’s wrist pain began in October last year after crashing her bike into the kerb, although she hadn’t fully fallen off. Her mother explained, “We thought it was just a sprain, so we bandaged it up and carried on.”
But two weeks later, Maisie-Leigh was still complaining of pain, so they visited the doctor, who sent them to A&E. After an X-ray, her mother said, “They told us, ‘It’s just a sprain, off you go,’ and sent us home.”
“They gave us paracetamol for the pain and a wrist splint, which helped a bit because it was tight around the wrist.”
However, the pain didn’t stop. Her mother recalled, “She wasn’t sleeping, crying in pain. She was in tears all day, saying it hurt. We had to pick her up from school three times because they called saying she was in pain.”
“She’d cry through the night too. She’d be asleep, and suddenly, you’d hear this almighty scream. There was no soothing her. The paracetamol didn’t help, and since she has asthma, we couldn’t give her ibuprofen.”
Ms Marsden felt helpless: “I kept telling Maisie, ‘The hospital said it was a sprain, there’s not much more I can do.’”
By the New Year, when Maisie-Leigh was still having sleepless nights, her mother realized how serious things had become at her nephew’s birthday party: “She was quiet the whole time at my sister’s, and that’s not like Maisie at all. With her ADHD, she’s usually bouncing off the walls.”
Maisie-Leigh’s wrist pain began in October last year, her mother explained: “She crashed her bike into the kerb but didn’t fall off completely. We just thought, ‘Oh, it’s probably just a sprain.'”
But Maisie-Leigh’s pain persisted, her mother said, all the way through to Christmas: “She couldn’t sleep because she was crying from the pain.”
She looked at the young girl’s arm and she was shocked by what she saw: ‘Obviously, I’d looked previously at the arm and there was nothing there, and it’s only then when I’ve gone and looked again to see what has come, I’ve noticed just below her elbow, the whole arm was swollen.’
Ms Marsden then took her daughter straight to A&E that night, January 3, where they did more X-rays and raised the possibility it might be a fracture.
They waited a week to get into the fracture clinic, where there was another X-ray, after which two consultants decided Maisie-Leigh needed blood tests and an MRI scan.
At that point, a nurse delivered the unsettling news that it could be more than just a sprain or fracture: “He said, ‘It could be something in the bone, an infection, or even bone disease.’ My mind was racing, and I ended up bursting into tears.”
About a week later, Maisie-Leigh had an MRI scan and was told to return in a week for the results. During this time, she was hospitalized due to the severe pain she was experiencing.
On January 29, less than a month after their visit to A&E, they received the devastating news that it was likely cancer—specifically Ewing sarcoma.
When they were told, Ms. Marsden recalled, “My mum and I just burst into tears.”
Ewing sarcoma is a rare form of bone cancer, typically affecting those aged 10 to 20. In the UK, around 90 people are diagnosed with it each year, according to the Bone Cancer Research Trust.
When they received the news, Ms. Marsden said, “My mum and I just burst into tears.”
The consultant sent all the paperwork, including biopsy results, to another hospital that day to ensure the diagnosis was correct. Two weeks later, on February 19, the devastating news was confirmed.
Ms. Marsden shared how difficult the waiting period was: “It was horrible. The uncertainty was the worst part, with the consultant telling us, ‘We think it could be cancer, but we need this biopsy to clarify.'”
Before all of this, the family had already planned a holiday to Marrakesh, Morocco, which happened to coincide with the time they were waiting for the final diagnosis. Ms. Marsden explained, “We had to ask permission to see if it was okay for her to fly. We wanted to know if it was safe to take her.”
Fortunately, doctors gave their approval, saying, “Go, take her, at least let her enjoy it.” With the expectation that they’d receive confirmation after their return, the family decided to let Maisie-Leigh enjoy one last trip before her treatment began.
However, things didn’t go as planned. Ms. Marsden recalled, “The day we landed in Marrakesh, my phone was buzzing with missed calls and voicemails.”
So, while on holiday, they received the confirmation that their daughter had cancer. It felt surreal, she said: “We thought we’d get the results when we got home, but we actually got them the day we arrived. Still, we tried to make the best of it.”
Looking back, Ms. Marsden said it was incredibly important to give Maisie-Leigh that final getaway before starting her intensive treatment. “She absolutely loved it.”
As soon as they returned from their holiday, they went to the hospital to discuss treatment options. It was decided that Maisie-Leigh would undergo nine rounds of chemotherapy, followed by surgery, then another five rounds, with scans throughout the process.
The consultant sent all the paperwork, including the biopsy results, to another hospital that day to confirm the diagnosis. Two weeks later, on February 19, the heartbreaking news was confirmed.
Maisie-Leigh officially began chemotherapy on March 5, and it has been “horrible to watch” her go through treatment, according to her mother, Ms. Marsden. “She has random bouts of sickness, where she’s walking one minute and then just throwing up. She’s sleeping all the time… and there have been a few nights where she’s crying in pain because her head hurts.”
Before starting chemotherapy, Maisie-Leigh donated 14 inches of her “long, brown, natural curly hair” to the Little Princess Trust. Ms. Marsden said, “She was more than happy to donate her hair to help another little girl.”
As her hair began to thin after just one round of chemotherapy, Maisie-Leigh had it completely shaved. A few days ago, the family received a wig from the Little Princess Trust. “She loved it,” said her mother. “She goes around saying, ‘Oh, I look fresh!'”
Ms. Marsden shared how her nine-year-old daughter has responded to everything: “She doesn’t fully understand it all yet. She’ll say, ‘I’ve got cancer,’ but she doesn’t really grasp the whole situation.”
Her mother believes that may be for the best: “I’m actually glad she doesn’t fully understand it all.”
Despite not fully grasping the emotional weight of the situation, the physical toll of chemotherapy has been evident. “Usually, she’s non-stop eating,” Ms. Marsden explained. “But after just two days of treatment last week, it completely wiped her out.”
Ms. Marsden said, “Since she was born, it’s been one thing after another. She’s never had a break.” Pictured: Maisie-Leigh as a baby, shortly after being born prematurely.
Even during her scheduled rest week, Maisie-Leigh remains exhausted, her mother shared: “She has a little bit of energy in the morning, but by afternoon, she’s completely wiped out, lying on the sofa, unable to move, and falling asleep.”
She added, “The smiley, happy, bouncy girl… now, she doesn’t have the mobility she once had. Her legs are more tired than before, and she’s just lying on the sofa—Maisie used to bounce off it.”
With only two days of chemotherapy under her belt, Ms. Marsden said, “I’m dreading next week because it will be her first full week of chemo, Monday to Saturday.”
She continued, “The bouts of sickness I can handle, but it’s hard watching her not able to do much—just sleeping and eating, complaining that her mouth and throat hurt.”
One of Ms. Marsden’s biggest concerns is Maisie-Leigh’s difficulty eating: “With chemo, she doesn’t want to eat, and it’s like watching her fade away, especially since she’s so petite already.”
Ms. Marsden also spoke about how Maisie-Leigh’s siblings, Millie-Rose, 10, and Reggie, 4, have been affected. “Her little brother has autism, so he’s oblivious to all of this, which is a relief. But her big sister, who used to fight with her all the time, has become so loving and caring toward her.”
Maisie-Leigh has faced health challenges her entire life. Her mother explained, “Since she was born, it’s literally been one thing after another. She’s never had a break.”
She was later diagnosed with audio and visual processing disorder, ADHD, and chronic asthma, which has required multiple hospitalizations. Once, a bout of chickenpox caused her to be rushed to the hospital, close to cardiac arrest. Pictured: Maisie-Leigh as a baby, after being born prematurely.
“Every time she goes out, I wrap her in bubble wrap,” her mother said, “because she’s had broken bones and injuries from the simplest things. It’s like she’s never had the chance to be a child and do the things kids her age should be doing.”
The family’s GoFundMe page, which aims to raise funds for transport to and from hospital appointments and to make Maisie-Leigh more comfortable, has raised £900 so far.
Ms. Marsden hopes that by sharing their story, they can help raise awareness of the rare bone cancer. “At least I can help others and raise awareness. This is the second rarest cancer.”
All of Maisie-Leigh’s data is being inputted into a research study focused on Ewing sarcoma, which the family hopes will contribute to finding better treatments and help other children overcome the disease.
A spokesperson for Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said, “While we cannot comment on individual cases due to patient confidentiality, it’s important to note that some conditions are complex and may not be diagnosed immediately. If any patient has ongoing concerns about their or their child’s health, their first step should be to consult with their GP, who can refer them to the appropriate place for further assessment or treatment—often, this is not A&E.”
“We deeply regret if patients or parents have any concerns regarding their care at any of our hospitals and encourage them to contact the Patient Advice and Liaison team, who will ensure a swift investigation into any concerns.”
A spokesperson for Alder Hey Children’s Hospital Trust commented, “We are unable to comment on individual cases. However, we can confirm that it can take up to two weeks to confirm a cancer diagnosis due to the thorough process required to ensure accuracy. After initial tests, this time allows for additional investigations, sometimes involving specialist services, to guarantee the diagnosis is as accurate as possible before any treatment decisions are made. The two-week timeframe is standard procedure in the UK.”
All relevant hospitals and NHS trusts have been contacted for comment.
