Gyles Brandreth recalls the 'shock to the system' of his baby grandson's cancer diagnosis as he opens up on his health battle and shares intimate family snaps

Gyles Brandreth has said his grandson's cancer diagnosis was a 'shock to the system' because he thought of the disease as 'something that happens to unlucky middle-aged people'.

The TV star and podcast host, 77, was horrified when Kitt was diagnosed at 15 months old in April 2017, after his parents found a pea-shaped lump near his stomach while changing his nappy.

Kitt, who is now 10 and lives abroad with his parents and brother Rory, 19, was given the all-clear in November 2017 and was able to ring the end-of-treatment bell in the hospital. 

Gyles' writer daughter Saethryd and her Army veteran husband Mark were initially told by a GP that the lump was likely to be a cyst or a hernia, but tests revealed Kitt had rhabdomyosarcoma.

Fewer than 60 children are diagnosed with the soft tissue sarcoma in the UK each year.

Kitt was treated at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH), where he had chemotherapy which caused him to lose his hair, and had several blood and platelet transfusions. He also suffered a bacterial infection which affected his heart and liver.

Gyles said: 'Kitt's diagnosis was a shock to the system. We think of cancer as something that happens to unlucky middle-aged people.

'You think of breast cancer or prostate cancer and older people, but you don't think of kids - well, we didn't. I think we didn't realise what a long journey it was going to be.

'But I have to say the moment we heard Kitt was going to Great Ormond Street we felt reassured because of their world-class reputation.

'There was the sense that whatever needed to be available would be available.'

He said the whole experience was 'emotional', adding: 'It's a case of holding your breath, being patient and trusting in the team, and I have to say the team were matchless at every level, from the consultants right the way through to the nursing staff and everyone else.

'Everyone is there for you. It's very moving because you never feel alone.'

He said that while Kitt's parents focused on caring for him, his role was being 'Grandpa, providing a sense of normality'.

He added: 'What they do brilliantly at Great Ormond Street is remember that children are children so there was a wonderful playroom.

'Kitt and I would do jigsaws, build things together - I'd build them up and he'd help knock them down, and I taught him funny poems.'

During treatment Kitt suffered a condition called veno-occlusive disease, a life-threatening condition commonly caused by high doses of chemotherapy which causes the obstruction of small veins in the liver and can lead to multiple organ failure.

Brandreth said: 'It became clear to us that the science in this area takes a long time to develop.

'You read things [about new treatments] in the paper and think this sounds exciting but when you speak to the doctors, they aren't available yet.'

Over the last few decades, there have been significant advances such as CAR T-cell therapy being used on children, which was pioneered at GOSH.

GOSH Charity - which provides free accommodation for families near the hospital to stay close to their children, a multi-faith chaplaincy service to offer spiritual support, and a dedicated Play team - has said more needs to be done to find kinder cancer treatments for children, and many children's cancers are still being treated with drugs developed in the 1970s.

Kit has been in remission for eight years and has yearly checks at GOSH.

Brandreth is supporting GOSH Charity's appeal to help build a world-leading Children's Cancer Centre ahead of World Cancer Day on Wednesday.