UK boy diagnosed with cancer 2 weeks after twin dies of brain tumor
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To honor his late brother Ben, Jack partakes in Brain Tumor Research's Wear A Christmas Hat Day to fundraise for the charity, and his family will host an open house.
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Ben and Jack Parton (DailyMail)
A UK family is left grieving after their son was diagnosed with leukemia just two weeks after his identical twin's funeral as a result of a brain tumor.
15-year-old Jack Parton was thought to have had PTSD after his twin Ben passed away in 2019. Jack's mother, Julie Parton, 54, said: "To be told my surviving son had leukemia was devastating. Although I have to hold out hope that leukemia is curable whereas Ben never had that chance."
Despite undergoing two surgeries, chemotherapy, and 30 sessions of radiotherapy, Ben passed away 10 days before Christmas in 2019. A CT scan at New Cross Hospital in Wolverhampton, UK, showed a mass on his brain. He was given a little less than two years to live and a mere two weeks after Ben's funeral, Jack was diagnosed with cancer.
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Jack's mother said: "Ben was very laid back compared to Jack who is feisty - they balanced each other out. But Ben loved Christmas and would get so excited from end of October. He made Christmas so fun for us."
To honor Ben, Jack partook in Brain Tumour Research's Wear A Christmas Hat Day to fundraise for the charity, as his family already raised nearly £1,000 ($----) and intends to host an open house event on Saturday.
In support of Jack, his classmates and teachers at Kingsmead School will be attending as well and wearing their own festive headwear.
Ms. Parton said: "This time of year is always hard as Ben died before Christmas, but we decided to use his love of parties to celebrate his life each December. Jack is doing well and nearing the end of his treatment. I feel privileged to be his mum."
"This year I am asking friends and family to donate what they can whilst wearing their favorite Christmas hat during an open house on December 10 to support Brain Tumour Research." Mel Tiley, community development manager at Brain Tumour Research, said: "Ben's story is devastating and we're grateful to Julie for sharing this with us."
