Boy, two, hit by cancer stuns his family by waking up from coma after they agreed to turn off his life support and now he has been sent home healthy
- Little Dylan Askin from Derby contracted a one-in-ten-million lung cancer
- His parents made the decision to have his life support machine turned off
- But moments before his heart rate began to stabilise and two years on he has beaten his cancer entirely
A two-year-old boy with cancer stunned his family after waking up from a coma moments after his parents agreed to turn off his life support.
Dylan Askin, from Shelton Lock, Derby, was sent home after his miracle recovery and now, two years later, has beaten his one-in-ten-million illness.
He had contracted an extremely rare type of lung cancer and was so ill his family had him christened as he lay in his hospital bed on Easter Sunday, 2016.
Two-year-old Dylan Askin (pictured), from Shelton Lock, contracted an extremely rare type of lung cancer
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Doctors did not think he would survive and Dylan's parents made the heartbreaking decision to have his life support machine turned off.
But the plucky youngster defied expectation, suddenly stirring at the Queens Medical Hospital.
He was awake - and soon began to regain his strength. The tiny tot was deemed stable enough to return home by Easter Sunday.
Two years on Dylan has beaten his illness. Kerry Askin, Dylan's Mum, said: 'I was strong in the belief that Dylan was our Easter miracle.
'I am not massively religious, but I did think it was a miracle.
'When we told our eldest son, he said 'he's like Jesus' - because he had been learning about it in school.'
The tiny tot's lungs had become as much as 80 per cent covered in cysts
On Christmas Day 2015, Dylan was rushed to Derby Royal Hospital with breathing problems and was found to have a collapsed lung.
Further tests by specialists on the High Dependency Unit in Nottingham revealed his lungs were 80 per cent covered in cysts.
But the youngster defied expectation, making a sudden recovery just before his life support was switched off
He was diagnosed with the extremely rare pulmonary Langerhans cell histiocytosis (PLCH).
Initially, Dylan recovered enough to leave intensive care, but then had a febrile seizure on his ward and contracted bacterial pneumonia.
His lungs were left barely functioning.
The doctors, in agreement with Dylan's parents, started to withdraw his life support.
Kerry said: 'On Good Friday they told us things were looking bleak and that we weren't going to get him back.
'All the settings on all the machines were at their highest and he was still struggling. We had him christened, all his family came from all over to say goodbye, including his big brother.'
But as medics withdrew his medication and began to sedate him, the boy's heart rate dropped to normal levels.
He was taken off life support the day of his parents' wedding anniversary on April 4.
Dylan (centre), his mother Kerry, father Mike, and two brothers Logan (left) and Bryce (right). The plucky youngster stunned medics at the Queens Medical Hospital
Kerry said: 'We just said stop, there is still fight in him.'
Dylan's oxygen levels started to improve and by Easter Sunday he had stabilised.
He was sent home on May 16 and on July 21 finished cancer treatment.
His parents are now supporting a campaign for CLIC Sargent - a charity which helps young people with cancer and which provided a social worker and grants to the family.
The parents are urging people to buy the charity's Easter eggs at Morrisons to help it help others.
Kate Lightfoot, senior account manager at CLIC Sargent, said: 'Dylan is such a lovely little boy, and we are delighted to hear of his progress.'
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