By Euro Weekly News Media • Published: 03 Mar 2018 • 12:48
CLEAR OF CANCER: Ashya King
THE family who sparked a manhunt when they took their son from Southampton General Hospital to Spain without doctors’ permission three-years-ago have said he is now ‘clear of cancer’.
Following a disagreement with doctors regarding his treatment parents, Brett and Naghemeh, abducted their young son Ashya from the NHS hospital in UK so that he could get pioneering treatment in Europe.
After a huge manhunt they were traced to a hostel in the Axarquia in southern Spain where they were arrested by police and detained for 72-hours.
Ashya had a medulloblastoma, which was successfully removed through surgery on July 24, 2014. He received further neurosurgery on August 22.
But his parents wanted their son be treated with proton therapy, which they felt was less harmful than conventional radiotherapy.
At that time the National Health Service did not provide proton therapy in the United Kingdom, although it has funded treatment abroad since April 2008 where evidence has shown there to be benefit.
In Ashya’s case the doctors did not support moving the boy so that he could get proton therapy, and in response, on August 28, 2014, the parents took their son out of the hospital without telling the medical team and boarded a ferry to France.
An international manhunt was launched.
Just two days later, on August 30, they were found in Spain.
Ashya’s parents were arrested and he was sent to a local hospital for urgent treatment. The parents were released when the request to extradite them to the United Kingdom was withdrawn.
The case was taken to the High Court and, on September 5, 2014, the court ruled that Ashya could receive proton therapy in Prague.
After the proton beam therapy, Ashya completed his recovery at the HC International Hospital in Marbella.
In June 2015 the family told the Euro Weekly News how the cancer was in remission.
Father, Brett, said, “It was the right thing to do, I’m glad we did what we thought was right for Aysha.
“Look at him now, happy and enjoying the day.”
“If we had stayed in Southampton, it’s quite possible he wouldn’t be here today,” he said.
“We need to look toward new technologies for curing cancers, radiotherapy and chemotherapy have been around since the 1940’s or 50’s.”
Doctors in the UK now say that Ashya, now eight-years-old, has been cleared of his rare brain cancer and say “there is no sign of any tumour recurrences”, according to a report in the Daily Mail this week.
Since March last Ashya has been well enough to attend school full time in the UK.
Share this story
Subscribe to our Euro Weekly News alerts to get the latest stories into your inbox!
By signing up, you will create a Euro Weekly News account if you don't already have one. Review our Privacy Policy for more information about our privacy practices.
Share your story with us by emailing newsdesk@euroweeklynews.com, by calling +34 951 38 61 61 or by messaging our Facebook page www.facebook.com/EuroWeeklyNews
With respect, the boy was not ” abducted”. His parents decided quite rationally to seek a second medical opinion. The British authorities, using the powers conferred on them by the odious European Arrest Warrant, treated that as a crime and the European law agencies had no choice but to accept that decision. The British authorities in this case behaved rather like the Stasi in communist East Germany pursuing somebody for “Republikflucht” – leaving the country without permission and the Spanish police had no choice but to execute their warrant. The ability to issue an arrest warrant which other countries must obey without providing prima facie evidence of an offence is an invitation to tyranny.
I’m with Edward, above. “Abduction” is hardly an apt description. Making sensible – and as it happens SUCCESSFUL – steps, out of love for THEIR child, beyond the reach of the limited, corrupted mainstream “health” system, more like.
My only question is why would they return with the boy to the UK after what they witnessed of the medical system that would have let their son die?
Good for the parents. They didn’t abduct their child; they saved him from the tyrannical NHS and State.
So happy for this family! We might not consider Ashya was abducted, nor I’m sure did his parents consider they were abducting him. Tragically the way things are in the UK the doctors and government did consider him abducted. This is the problem that needs to be resolved: doctors and the government of UK believe they are the ones that should be allowed to determine care for children. They are WRONG. The parents of the children should be the ones determining their care, unless there is evidence of abuse and/or neglect.
The price of liberty is eternal vigilance.
Comments are closed.
By signing up, you will create a Euro Weekly News account if you don’t already have one. Review our Privacy Policy for more information about our privacy practices.
Download our media pack in either English or Spanish.