Basildon Muay Thai fighter's son diagnosed with cancer

Bobby James-Dillard was diagnosed with the cancerous tumour in June and is undergoing a course of treatment until February next year. 

His dad, Will, is one of the top fighters at Silver Spirit Muay Thai gym in Basildon, and is confident there is “light at the end of the tunnel” despite the youngster struggling with the impact of treatment. 

A fundraiser has been launched to help the family, including Bobby’s twin Reggie, and so far has raised £1,200 of the £7,000 goal. Bobby (L), Will, Reggie (R) (Image: Will Dillard)

Will said: “I started to notice he would have morning sickness on weekends, you wouldn’t think too much of it at first, but he started getting tired during the day, falling over a lot, his mother noticed it too, she saw him swaying.

“Getting the news was overwhelming. You never thought that you would experience your son having death knocking on his door.Bobby James-Dillard - The three-year-old has undergone two rounds of chemotherapy (Image: Will Dillard)

“They removed all of the tumour in one go. Great news at the time, but the day after, we found out it was cancerous. Now he needs to go through all the nasty treatment, which is the hardest part out of all of it.

“For Bobby, he keeps going to these places, you can’t explain it to him. He doesn’t really understand what’s going on, all he knows is he’s being dragged away from his brother and that has an emotional strain.

“It’s been difficult for me, at the beginning, I was a bit all over the place. It’s hard because I just want to see him, it has been emotional.”

Undergoing treatment - Bobby was diagnosed with medulloblastoma in June this year (Image: Will Dillard)

Will said Bobby’s mother, Stephanie, was referred to a local hospital for a CT scan after taking him to a doctor, before being referred to King’s College Hospital leading to a further MRI scan.

Gym's support - Will has thanked Silver Spirit gym in Basildon for their support (Image: Will Dillard)

Bobby has undergone two rounds of chemotherapy, and is now in the last week of a six-week radiotherapy course. He will undergo a further four rounds of chemotherapy which will conclude in February, followed by an MRI, kidney test and heart scan.

Will added: “It’s a parent’s worst nightmare. I feel like we’re at the top of the hill now, I feel like we’re on the other side. Everyone’s been really supportive, we’re not just a gym, we are a family.”

Visit gofundme.com/f/bobbies-battle-with-brain-cancer-supporting-the-will to donate.