'We thought son, 15, had asthma - now he could have months to live'

A "fit and healthy" schoolboy aged 15 is facing just months left to live after doctors initially thought his breathlessness was asthma.

Jude Hazard visited the doctors earlier this year after he became short of breath while doing everyday activities like walking up the stairs. His family said it was thought to be asthma until he visited A&E in July, where a scan revealed an 8cm tumour on the back of his heart.

He has since had the tumour removed, but there are no other treatment options available in the UK to kill the remaining cancer in the lining of his left atrium, said his family. Jude is currently crowdfunding for potentially life-saving treatment, which is only available in Japan or America. If not treatment can be found, he may only have a couple of months left to live.

Jude, from Silksworth in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, said: "I am feeling okay at the moment. I just want everything to go back to normal so I can continue to just live my life as I used to do. I am currently enjoying my time with friends."

His mum Katie Hazard, 39, said the surgeons and doctors had all said what a "strong, courageous boy" her son was.

She said: “Jude is well-liked and a very sociable kid. He loves nothing more than being out with friends, eating out and loves good food.

“He attends the gym daily, and is such a bright boy, loving, generous, caring and a thoughtful young man. We are just so grateful to everyone who has supported us through a GoFundMe page ."

Jude was diagnosed with Intimal Sarcoma - a rare form of vascular cancer. Doctors have said the teen's cancer is so rare that it is estimated to affect only one or two in 100 million people and those are most usually adults.

Shaun Ward, 36, a cousin of Jude's, said: "The doctors said they have never seen a case in a child, which shows how rare it is."

The electrician said the family were "heartbroken" when they were told of the diagnosis. He revealed how Jude began feeling breathless in May while performing ordinary tasks.

Katie and his dad Daniel Hazard, 42, took him to his local GP, who they said thought it might be asthma and provided him with an inhaler. The teen tried four different inhalers without a change in his symptoms, his family have said.

His worried parents took him to Sunderland Hospital, where medics performed a chest scan and a large tumour was found on the back of his heart. Shaun said the family were "in bits" when they were told about the tumour.

Jude was then blue-lighted to Freeland Hospital in Newcastle, where he underwent a five-hour emergency surgery to remove the tumour. During the operation Jude died for two minutes, his family has revealed.

Tragically, surgeons weren't able to remove the tumour fully, with parts of it still in his left atrium lining. Shaun said Jude was currently recovering and was feeling "positive" about the prospect of further treatment.