A mother who thought her toddler had a sickness bug was told he could die within 24 hours without treatment after doctors discovered a brain tumor. Kristiana Jansone, 33, first noticed changes in her son Dominic Rockcliffe when he was just six months old. Doctors initially classified him as “failure to thrive,” a term for children not growing at the expected rate, and later attributed his vomiting to a sickness bug or acid reflux.
Emergency Diagnosis
In September 2023, after Dominic began vomiting constantly and could not retain any liquids, Kristiana rushed him to Morriston Hospital in Swansea. An MRI scan revealed he had hydrocephalus and optic pathway glioma (BRAF fusion), a type of brain cancer caused by the BRAF gene fusing with another gene, creating a permanent “on” switch for cancer cell growth. Kristiana said: “When they sat me down and told me what’s happening with him I couldn’t believe it. It felt like everything was going in slow motion and I was obviously holding him at the time and couldn’t believe this little tiny boy had such an unfortunate fate.”
Emergency Surgery
The family was transferred to Cardiff, where Dominic underwent emergency surgery at Cardiff Children’s Hospital to fit a VP shunt to drain fluid from his brain. Kristiana added: “They came in and explained the situation and said he does have a tumour but also had something called hydrocephalus. They said the fluid had built up so much that if they don’t drain it in the next 24 hours he is going to die.”
Treatment Challenges
Two years after his diagnosis, Dominic contracted meningitis after his VP shunt became infected, leaving him in hospital for eight weeks. He underwent three rounds of chemotherapy, but the treatment failed to stop the cancer from progressing. Kristiana said: “He has had three rounds of chemotherapy. Every single time it’s been picked up that it’s not working. An MRI in April showed growth again which means we’ve exhausted all chemotherapies for him in Cardiff.”
Hope in Latvia
The family now hopes to take Dominic to Latvia for targeted therapies, including the drug Tovorafenib, a weekly oral medication only available in the EU. Thanks to his dual citizenship, Dominic is eligible for the treatment. Kristiana is raising money to cover travel, accommodation, food, and other costs while the family stays in Latvia. She said: “Luckily Dominic has the privilege of dual citizenship - the hospital in Latvia and everything is free for us. Dominic will be the first child in Latvia to get the new drug.” She added that all her family members in Latvia have passed away, so they will be staying in hotels, renting a car, and buying plane tickets. She has already paid £1,600 for flights and suitcases for the trip at the end of July.
