Our hero! Family hail optician who spotted boy's brain tumour

An eight-year-old boy's life may have been saved after an optician spotted a brain tumour during a routine eye test.

Ryan Cornwell was taken to see optometrist Dharmendra Patel at Blaby Eye Care after complaining of painful headaches.

During the examination, Mr Patel discovered Ryan had a swollen optical disc and distorted arteries, both signs of a growth in the brain.

Mum Pam Hunt and Ryan's dad, Peter Cornwell, were devastated when doctors confirmed the worst – that Ryan had a highly-aggressive form of cancer called a primitive neuroectodermal tumour.

Ryan is now undergoing potentially life-saving treatment for the aggressive brain cancer. Specialists believe the disease may have been caught early enough for Ryan to recover.

Pam, 48, from Blaby, says Mr Patel has saved her son's life.

She said: "It came as a great shock. The doctors think it had only been there for a few weeks, that's why we are so grateful to Mr Patel. He's like a hero. The doctors are confident that they will get it."

Following the diagnosis in July, Ryan had an operation to relieve pressure on his brain, and is now undergoing chemotherapy. This month, doctors will decide whether he needs an operation to remove the tumour.

Pam said: "Ryan has coped with it really, really well. He's generally very cheerful.

"It's his strength that's getting us through, really. There are some days that are all right, and then others when you just want to burst into tears."

Ryan, who lives with his mum, dad, and five-year-old brother Alex, said: "I have made a friend in hospital and I like playing there.

"It's good, there's lots of stuff to do."

Ryan is being treated at Leicester Royal Infirmary and the Queen's Medical Centre, in Nottingham, which specialises in head and brain injuries and conditions. Doctors have warned the family that because of the position of the tumour, which is in the part of the brain, which affects balance and movement, there is a possibility that an operation could leave Ryan with a temporary, or even permanent disability.

For now, the family are concentrating on his chemotherapy, which they hope will remove the need for an operation. Mr Patel, who has been working as an optometrist for 17 years, says he has never detected "anything as sinister" as Ryan's condition before.

He has now become a friend of the family, who visit him most weeks to update him on Ryan's progress.

He said: "We do see a lot of things with eye tests, to be honest. We can detect things like diabetes, heart conditions and thyroid problems, but I've never seen a brain tumour before.

"It was quite unnerving, to be honest, because I knew what it was. But I couldn't tell Pam, as it had to be diagnosed properly. I just told her to go to the hospital.

"We are just delighted that we managed to discover the condition and that Ryan started his treatment early enough.

"I dread to think of the consequences if it had been left longer."

Ryan's family have decided to raise £10,000 for the Children's Brain Tumour Research Centre.

The first fund-raising event will be a gig at Sumo, in Braunstone Gate, Leicester, with city band Stonepark and Oasis tribute group Live Forever on Friday, November 14.

For more information, go to:

www.justgiving.com/ryancornwell