Family Spent Christmas in Hospital as Brave Five-Year-Old Marley Battles Leukaemia

The festive season looked different for Shaunna Bourne and her family in 2025. Usually they’d be celebrating with a house full of relatives, but Shauna, her husband James and their 11-year-old daughter, Ava, spent Christmas with their son and brother, Marley, in his room at our hospital.

It was December 2022, just two months after Marley’s second birthday, when Shaunna noticed rashes and bruising across his body. Marley was prescribed antibiotics by his GP but they didn’t help and Shaunna knew something wasn’t right. On Boxing Day, Marley’s condition got worse – he couldn’t put any weight on his legs so Shaunna took him to their local A&E. Marley and Shaunna stayed overnight while they waited for the results of Marley’s blood tests but as soon as they did, Marley was transferred to our hospital.

Marley was admitted to our oncology ward while he underwent further tests and Shaunna told herself it was just a precaution but on the 29 December, the Bourne family received the devastating news that Marley had Acute Myeloid Leukaemia – a rare but aggressive type of cancer that affects the blood and bone marrow.

Marley started his first round of chemotherapy within weeks of the diagnosis, and after five long months, the family were told he’d gone into remission and was able to ring the bell to signal the end of cancer treatment.  However, 10 months later, a regular check-up revealed his platelet levels were down and he had relapsed.

Shaunna remembered: “It was devastating. Marley was only three at the time, and it had been a lot to go through from the initial diagnosis to treatment and then finding out it had come back. We came back for another round of chemotherapy, and this time he needed a stem cell transplant, which he had last July.””

Marley handled his treatment well and nine weeks later, he was ringing the bell for the second time and was discharged just in time for his fourth birthday. The family were so excited – they could finally enjoy their life again and Marley only needed to return to hospital for check-ups.

Sadly though, in March 2025, just seven months later, Shaunna got a phone call from Marley’s consultant asking them to come in the next day. Their hearts dropped as they were told there were signs of cancer in Marley’s bone marrow and sadly in June 2025, Marley relapsed for the second time.

He went through another gruelling round of chemotherapy along with the trial drug and had a second stem cell transplant a few months later. This time around, Marley experienced severe blistering across his body along with many other aggressive side effects – and his fight continued over Christmas.

Shaunna said: “In mid-November we realised there was no way Marley would be home for Christmas – he’s so poorly, he needs his treatment and his immune system is at rock bottom – so we’ll just make the best of it and have a much smaller Christmas with him in his hospital room. Of course, it’s not where we want to be but if giving up this Christmas means Marley has the chance to see more Christmases, that’s what we’ll do.

“The hospital and its charity have done so much to make the hospital feel like home too – there’s decorations across the wards, a grotto for patients, and we’ve had special visitors including Santa and local football clubs. It’s made the world of difference for Marley and I’m so grateful.”

Annie Eytle, Head of Public Fundraising at Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity, said: “We’re on a mission to make Christmas as magical as possible for our patients, especially those like Marley, who are too poorly to be at home where they want to be.

“It’s only thanks to the support of the public and our incredible donors that we’re able to spread so much festive cheer and make our hospital feel like a festive home for our brave patients and families, so if anyone would like to donate and help us continue that magic, please visit our Christmas Appeal page.