Footy great Tom Harley warns parents about illness that almost claimed the life of his five-week-old son

Swans CEO and former footy star Tom Harley has opened up about his son’s battle with meningococcal disease, insisting parents should speak with their doctors about the deadly infection. 

Harley’s son Hugo survived Meningococcal B – an infection that kills one in every ten diagnosed with it – against all odds after bacteria made its way into his spinal cord and brain. 

Experts are warning that the disease is likely to spike in the coming months, and Harley and his wife Felicity and encouraging parents to stay vigilant.

‘I still vividly remember driving my incredibly ill baby to the hospital and not knowing if he would live,’ he said

‘Acting quickly on the first symptoms may have saved his life.’

‘Looking back, I realise I did not know enough about meningococcal disease and I didn’t have a lot of information about the different strains of meningococcal or the range of symptoms until my own baby was hospitalised.

‘I wish I had been aware of all the symptoms, the different types of meningococcal bacteria that circulate in Australia and the rapid speed at which this infection can progress.’

‘I would encourage all parents to speak with their doctors about how to help reduce risks for their families and to not hesitate if they suspect meningococcal disease,’ Harley said.

Harley (pictured with his family) says he wishes he had been aware of all the symptoms

Ms Harley told Daily Mail Australia  shortly afterwards that she knew something wasn’t right with her son. 

‘It is so hard to tell with a five week old and in the end I think it was my mother’s intuition because he was breathing okay but I knew something was not right,’ Ms Harley said.

‘I had just had tonsillitis so I kept telling myself it was just a cold but when we got to the hospital they rushed us straight through,’ she added.

Ms Harley and her husband had to watch young Hugo go through painful tests including a lumbar puncture which came back with unusual results.

‘I will never forget the doctor coming in and saying “he has a really high white blood cell count, we think this could be really serious”,’ she said.

The Harleys encourage all parents to speak with their doctors about the risks

Ms Harley said she went through hell waiting for the test results to confirm if he had meningococcal.

‘We had no idea what we could be dealing with. The effects can be pretty severe from neurological damage to seizures or death.

‘We could have had a child with learning difficulties, mental disabilities – your mind goes all over the place while you are pacing the wards of the hospital.’