A nine-year-old boy who suffers from a crippling spinal condition has written a heartbreaking letter to Santa asking for his pain to be taken away.
Tyler Chambers, from Wraby, Lincolnshire, asked Father Christmas to make his back better this year, as well as asking for scooter, chocolates and a football.
A nine-year-old boy who suffers from a crippling spinal condition has written a heartbreaking letter to Santa asking for his pain to be taken away
Tyler asked for a scooter, chocolate, a football and to ‘make my back better and don’t get any more pain’ in his letter to Santa
Young Tyler, who wants to grow up to be a footballer, suffers from scoliosis, a condition which causes his spine to curve.
He also has a brain condition which affects his spinal chord and nerves.
In the letter written in green felt-tip pen Tyler asked Santa to ‘make my back better and don’t get any more pain’.
Young Tyler Chambers, who wants to grow up to be a footballer, suffers from scoliosis, a condition which causes his spine to curve
His Mum, Natasha Ward, 28, said: ‘I started crying as soon as I saw it. In the past year, he has been through so much.
‘He always says, ‘Mum, you know when I grow up and I’m a footballer, I’m gonna buy you a Lamborghini- I’m gonna buy you a Lamborghini but it has to be green.’
‘He really is so sweet and loving.
‘I used to keep telling him all the time to stand up straight and to stand properly, and he was like, ‘Mum, I am standing straight!’
‘I just thought, well, something’s not right.’
Tyler, 9, pictured here with his siblings Lola Deans, 5, Oakley Deans, 1, and Evie Deans, 6 – he says he wants to grow up to be a footballer and buy his mum a Lamborgini
Natasha first noticed a problem in April last year, when Tyler wasn’t standing up straight.
She took him to the GP who referred Tyler to Sheffield Children’s Hospital.
After MRI scans doctors found that Tyler had a 61 degree curve in his spine – which lead to the diagnoses of scoliosis.
The hospital also discovered Tyler had a brain condition called chiari malformation, which means the lower part of his brain is pushing down into his spinal canal.
The hospital also discovered Tyler had a brain condition called chiari malformation, which means the lower part of his brain is pushing down into his spinal canal, he had brain surgery last year
After MRI scans doctors found that Tyler had a 61 degree curve in his spine – which lead to the diagnoses of scoliosis
Tyler had brain surgery last December in a bid to fix the problem and is wearing a Velcro and elastic Spine Core brace for 20 hours a day in a bid to straighten his back. He may face further surgery if he the brace doesn’t work.
Mum-of-four Natasha said: ‘We don’t know if the chiari malformation is completely better, because it could cause problems with the fluid again in the future and he might need more surgery.’
Tyler had brain surgery last December in a bid to fix the problem and is wearing a Velcro and elastic Spine Core brace for 20 hours a day in a bid to straighten his back
Tyler is hoping that his dreams to be a footballer won’t be crushed by his health – as he still plays for his school team and Lincoln City Skills Academy.
Natasha said: ‘Tyler loves football, he’d be lost without it.’
She even sent a letter to Lincoln City, his favourite team and they offered to send him a Christmas card.
But if he needs further spinal surgery, doctors will insert metal rods into his back, which would stop him playing the game he loves.
Tyler is hoping that his dreams to be a footballer won’t be crushed by his health – as he still plays for his school team and Lincoln City Skills Academy
Natasha said: ‘I don’t know how I would tell him, it would be heartbreaking.
‘You should have seen his face when the doctor said that he might not play football if the brace doesn’t work.
‘He can wear this brace for up to two years, and sometimes he’s fine with almost no pain, but it’s really bad over the winter months, he’s off school today because of it.
‘Tyler will give everything. He’s good to his three younger siblings and he’s great with them and very helpful.
Tyler pictured here with his sisters, Evie and Lola – his Mum says he’s ‘great with his younger siblings’
Natasha hopes to raise awareness of the brain condition, chiari malformation, which she says she had never heard of before Tyler’s diagnosis
‘He just says to me all the time, he hates going to the hospital, because he doesn’t know what’s going to happen next, it’s hard.
‘Like every child, he has his moments, but he’s very loving and football mad. He is going through so much.’
Natasha hopes to raise awareness of the brain condition, which she says she had never heard of before Tyler’s diagnosis.
She believes her son is lucky compared to other children she has met who are wheelchair-bound.
Natasha said: ‘I don’t know what will happen later in life. I can’t look into future. It’s just a waiting game.’