‘Emre asks to visit Elijah in heaven, it’s heartbreaking,’ says mum, after baby twins faced killer but only one survived
A HEARTBROKEN mum watched her two baby boys battle the same deadly disease and only one of them survived.
Nicole Duhaney’s twin sons Emre and Elijah were both diagnosed with leukaemia when they were just four months old.
Tragically, little Elijah lost his battle with the disease aged 10 months.
Nicole and her partner Nile have welcomed a new son, Abel, who they say is a gift from his big brother Elijah – and who shares the same birth mark above his right eye.
He was born just four days after the anniversary of his brother’s death.
Nicole and Nile, 31, are now planning a fundraising ball in Elijah’s memory, to support Candlelighters, a charity which offers help to families of children with cancer.
Nicole, 25, from Huddersfield, says: “When we learned we had to say goodbye, we took both boys home – for the first time – and we spent two precious days together as a family, before he passed away.
“They were in the same cot, reaching out to each other.
I saw the doctor who was pretty dismissive, I felt because I was a young, first-time mum, I wasn’t taken seriously
Nicole Duhaney
“Each birthday, each milestone, is bittersweet, because whilst we are celebrating for Emre, we are also missing Elijah. I see Emre and imagine exactly how Elijah would look.
“And yet there is comfort that he lives on through Emre and Abel. I truly believe Abel is a gift from Elijah and his birthmark is an angel’s kiss.”
Worrying first signs
When Nicole fell pregnant, aged 19, it was a shock to them both.
She says: “I was planning to go travelling, I hadn’t thought about becoming a mum at all at that stage. Then we found out it was twins, so it was a big adjustment for us both!”
The pregnancy went well and their identical twin sons, Emre and Elijah, were born naturally, on December 23 2018.
Nicole says: “From that first moment, I loved being a mother, I really felt it was meant to be.
“Even though I was young, I didn’t feel I’d missed out at all and I adored the boys. Nile was a brilliant, hands-on father too.”
But the couple quickly became concerned about the boys’ health.
Nicole says: “I noticed a small lump under the skin on Elijah’s cheek, and then one on Emre’s back.
“They both had colds too, and they had low iron.
It’s devastating for any parent, but we had twice the worry, and twice the stress
Nicole Duhaney
“I saw the doctor who was pretty dismissive, I felt because I was a young, first-time mum, I wasn’t taken seriously.”
The lumps continued to appear and Nicole made trips to the doctor and hospital.
She says: “Each time, I was asked if I had a social worker.
“I understand they have to rule out non-accidental injury, but I felt that was their only focus.
“I just wanted someone to listen, to join up all the different symptoms they had. My instinct was that something was wrong.”
The boys were eventually diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) aged four months. Nicole was told they had likely had the condition from birth.
She says: “Elijah was diagnosed first but I knew, in my heart, Emre had it too.
“It’s devastating for any parent, but we had twice the worry, and twice the stress.”
An ‘impossible decision’
Elijah responded well to chemotherapy, but Emre did not, and Nicole was warned he might die.
Though he rallied, both boys needed stem cell transplants, during which they were separated for the first time.
Nicole says: “Elijah continued to improve and was allowed home, but Emre was still very poorly. We lived in accommodation at the hospital, with Elijah, so we could be near to Emre.
“I had a night or two away, for my 21st birthday, and when we moved house, but otherwise I rarely left their side.”
But though he had been discharged, Elijah’s condition began to worsen.
I’ve told him he’s in heaven but then he will ask: ‘Can I go to heaven this weekend to see Elijah?’ and it is so sad
Nicole Duhaney
He was readmitted to hospital and scans showed his cancer had spread and there was nothing doctors could do. His family made plans to bring him home.
Nicole says: “We were given the option to extend his life by around six weeks with surgery, but we chose to let him go peacefully; it was an impossible decision which broke our hearts.
“Nile and I had our own place by now, but we had never lived in it together as a family. We wanted one night at home, all together, before we said goodbye.”
Heartbroken, they brought both boys home to Huddersfield. The next night, October 22 2019 Elijah, aged 10 months, passed away with his brother by his side.
Elijah’s favourite song: ‘Wind The Bobbin Up;’ was played at his funeral.
A ‘gift from Elijah’
Emre has thankfully made a good recovery and now, aged five, is a healthy little boy.
Nicole says: “We have raised Emre talking about his brother and cherishing the memories. I’ve told him he’s in heaven but then he will ask: ‘Can I go to heaven this weekend to see Elijah?’ and it is so sad.
On October 26 2022 – four days after Elijah’s anniversary, Nicole gave birth to a baby boy, Abel.
She says: “I was terrified all through the pregnancy but thankfully, Abel was born perfectly healthy.
“He has a birthmark over his right eye in exactly the same place as Elijah’s.
“I think he’s a gift from Elijah, and the birthmark is his kiss. Abel is so similar to Elijah in character, he is cheeky and mischievous, and his favourite song is ‘Wind The Bobbin Up’ too.
“Each anniversary, each birthday, is bittersweet, because whilst we are celebrating for Emre, we are also missing Elijah.
“And yet there is comfort that he lives on through Emre and Abel.”
The symptoms of acute myeloid leukaemia
Leukaemia is a cancer of the white blood cells.
When it is acute, it is aggressive and progresses very quickly.
Symptoms of acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) usually develop over several weeks and worsen with time. They include:
- Looking pale or ‘washed out’
- Tiredness or weakness
- Breathlessness
- Frequent infections
- Unusual or frequent bleeding
- Unintentional weight loss
There are around 3,100 new AML cases in the UK every year.
It is slightly more common in men and women, and it affects people aged 85 to 89 more than any other age group.
Around 2,700 people die from the condition annually.
Source: NHS and Cancer Research UK