“It was surreal. We walked into St Helier, and Jackson was a live wire, with just his rash.
Just a few hours later, he was rushed off to another hospital and had all these experts and special equipment around him. I cried the whole way to St George’s, I could barely see.”
When Shaun Hall first heard from his wife Sam that their son Jackson, then aged two, had developed a rash, he immediately feared for the worst. Shaun’s niece had experienced meningitis at a young age, and he understood what an unexplained rash could mean for his then two-year-old son.
Upon hearing that Jackson had been diagnosed with Leukaemia in February 2020, Sam and Shaun Hall knew their lives were going to change. The parents described the news as a ‘wrecking ball’ through their lives, especially considering that COVID was already turning their world upside down.
Yet in April of this year, Jackson will be five years on from the initial diagnosis and classed ‘cancer-free.’ This significant milestone marks another stage in a long journey that has shaped their young family from Sutton.
However, throughout, both parents admit that they would not be where they are today without the staff at St George’s and the Royal Marsden Hospital, who they say gave them ‘the fighting’ mindset when they needed it the most.
Shaun and Sam sat down with the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) to talk about their story and how the ‘amazing’ staff helped them through the difficult time.
Shaun recalled the day they first learned of Jackson’s diagnosis. “We first discovered the diagnosis on Sunday, February 2, 2020.
“Sam messaged me saying Jackson had a rash and wouldn’t go away with the tumbler test. My niece had meningitis, so when I heard this, we knew we needed to take him to the hospital.”
After arriving at St Helier Hospital, what initially seemed like a routine visit quickly escalated into a life-changing event. “We got there at 3pm, and it was just before 8pm when we found out,” Shaun continued. “When they came in, we could tell it would be bad news.”
Sam shared how difficult it was to stay composed during this time. She said: “Shaun kept it together, but I couldn’t.
“The only reason we took him was because of Taylor, his niece. They found out a couple of hours before she was born.”
Their lives were forever changed when Jackson was diagnosed with leukaemia, a form of cancer affecting white blood cells. “Jackson’s white blood cell count was 174, which was alarmingly high,” Shaun explained.
He added: “We were transferred to St George’s ICU, and just a few hours after walking into St Helier, Jackson was rushed to another hospital with all these experts and special equipment around him.”
After 11 days in the hospital, during which Jackson began his course of chemotherapy treatment, Sam and Shaun were finally allowed to return home with their son. However, the couple told the LDRS how they could never truly relax as Jackson would have to be rushed back to the hospital every time his temperature reached 38 degrees.
Sam said: “One of us had always packed an overnight bag if we needed to rush off to St George’s. We would be there for two days and then swap for two days.”
During those uncertain times, the Hall family relied heavily on the care and support of the medical team. Both parents, Jackson and their elder daughter Ava became close with the staff, seeing them as a second family during their months on the wards.
Sam told the LDRS: “The doctors and nurses were so caring. One doctor even came back after his shift to check on us, and you could tell he really cared, and it made such a difference.”
The Halls also credit St George’s and The Royal Marsden with helping them navigate the difficulties of the COVID-19 pandemic, which hit around the same time as Jackson’s early treatment.
Sam said: “When COVID came in March, it got so bad. They said we couldn’t swap anymore, and one of us could stay with Jackson.”
Shaun added: “Jackson had a fungal lung infection and spent nearly all of March in the hospital. We had to decide for one of us to stay with him, which was tough. We couldn’t even leave the room for two weeks.”
Despite the added strain of the pandemic, the Halls appreciated the human connection they found with staff. “We were quite close with the nurses,” Sam said: “I used to jump on them for conversation, and I think they appreciated it, too, as they hadn’t seen many other people.
“One of the nurses was helpful because her daughter also went through it. It was really nice to talk to someone who knew what it was like.
“Jackson even has his own Instagram page, and they follow his journey there. It made a difference on a personal level to talk to them during that time.
“The staff at The Royal Marsden were amazing. They even provided art therapy for Ava, which helped her cope too.”
Despite this support, the countless hours spent in the hospital during the three years and two months of treatment meant Jackson missed a substantial amount of his early school life. After missing all of the reception, Jackson only returned to Tweedale School in St Helier halfway through Year 1.
However, according to Sam and Shaun, the hospital once again stepped in by providing at-home educational support through the Royal Marsden’s STARS service. This reintegration support, alongside the help from his family and school, meant Jackson could eventually join his classmates and make up for lost time.
Shaun told the LDRS: “He was really anxious at the start, but he had Ava at school as well, and she looked out for him. He is still behind on a lot of things, but he’s getting better.”
Jackson’s treatment officially ended on April 25 2023, and the family marked the occasion by watching him ring the bell surrounded by his friends and staff at St Georges.
Sam recalled the happy moment: “It was great, the sun was out. We had all the nurses out, his consultant came, and one person who had left the hospital came back to see him.”
Jackson now goes for checkups every three months and splits his time between the two hospitals, where ‘everyone knows his name.’ Shaun and Sam received more good news a year later when they welcomed baby Louie into the family, with whom Sam admits Jackson is ‘besotted’.
Despite the happy ending to their story, the parents were keen to stress that there were many tough days throughout. They also acknowledged the difficulty of seeing families in similar situations who were not receiving the same good news about their child’s leukaemia.
Sam said: “I struggled more with survivors guilt after Jackson finished his treatment. I knew he was doing well and other people’s children were not, it was hard to deal with that.
“I see a lot of kids who we know that have relapsed. There is always that worry and it never goes away.”
Shaun added: “We have met quite a few other parents on Instagram from going through this journey, and we share stories. We always say it’s like a little community that no one wants to be part of.”
When asked what advice they have for other parents going through a similar situation, they both responded: “Take it day by day. There will be good days and bad days, so enjoy the good days.”
