A mum is urging other parents to trust their instincts when it comes to their children’s health after her three-year-old son was diagnosed with leukaemia.

Lauren Russell, who is the landlady of the Dukes Head pub in Hamstreet, near Ashford, has gone through “hell” and feared at one point that she would lose little Harley.

The youngster has been bravely battling leukaemia - a type of blood cancer - since December, with chemotherapy treatment including injections in his spine.

When Miss Russell first became concerned about Harley she was eight months pregnant with her daughter Niyah - and others blamed her worries on her hormones.

The 36-year-old told KentOnline: “Harley wasn’t himself.

“Everyone kept saying to me, ‘No, he's fine, it's just your hormones.’

“But I just knew there was something wrong with him – a mum just knows.

“He started getting really, really constipated and sensitive to water so he was hating his baths. He would be screaming to the point where he just didn't want to have a bath.

“He went off his food and lost his appetite, all these little things that you just don't really put two and two together.

“I didn't expect my worst nightmare that it would be that [cancer], but I just knew something deep down was not right.

“I think as a mum, if that's what you think, then get your child checked.”

Harley was taken out of nursery and not long after developed a chest infection. He was diagnosed with a respiratory syncytial virus and blood tests found he had leukaemia too.

“It's absolute hell,” Miss Russell added.

“You hear about other families going through it, but you just never, ever expect it to happen to you, ever.

“When we got the diagnosis, I remember the doctors coming in and asking to speak to mum and dad out of the room. I knew then that it was bad news.

“I said whatever they had to say, they could say it here. I said I'm not leaving Harley’s side.

“At one point, we thought we were going to lose him.”

It was a quick start to Harley’s treatment as his mum explained he was diagnosed on the Tuesday morning and transferred to St George's in London that afternoon.

Two days later, he had surgery to have a port-a-cath fitted in his chest for his treatment to go through, and he started chemo on that day too.

Miss Russell says it was horrible to have to see her little boy endure the treatment, which has left him traumatised.

He would sometimes have “intense” chemo four days a week and have to stay in hospital. It is now done monthly and is due to end in January 2026 - with Harley being given a 95% of overcoming the cancer.

One side effect of being on steroids alongside the chemo was that he lost all the feeling in his legs.

“We had to teach him to walk again,” Miss Russell explained.

She says Harley struggle to understand what was going on when the treatment started.

“All he kept just kept saying was ‘home mummy’ and ‘help me, help me’. It was just horrendous,” she said.

“Now, he's quite good. He hates all doctors, and he's traumatised, but he knows it's got to be done.

“He knows that it's not going to hurt him now, they just put the needle in – we call it Wiggly, the tube that comes out of his chest and we just say, we're giving Wiggly a drink.”

Because of his treatment, Harley is at home 24/7 with his mum – which she says is hard given she also has Niyah - now seven months old - to care for, as well as running the pub, which she took on in 2018.

“It is really hard because I'm trying to run a business and look after them,” she said.

“I feel guilty if I'm not doing enough for the pub, then I feel guilty if I'm not doing enough with my children. It's just really hard work.”

While Miss Russell is able to go out for walks with her son during nice weather, fears over the spread of germs mean activities inside are restricted.

“Harley gets really bored,” she said.

“We can't go to soft plays - can't do anything indoors with other children or too many people.”

Despite this, Miss Russell says she has an incredible team at the pub who have really stepped up since Harley’s diagnosis.

“They do a lot for me, and for the first eight months of his diagnosis, my mum and dad moved in with me,” she explained.

“They basically took over the pub and helped me with my daughter's childcare if I was taking Harley to hospital. But they live in Turkey, so they've gone back now.

“Day to day is hard but we get through it and I'm lucky that my business can still run.

“I am exhausted, but I think you just get used to it. I need to run my business to earn money so that I can provide for my children, and obviously, hospital visits, they're not cheap to run up and down to London in the car.”

Harley currently has treatment monthly at the William Harvey Hospital in Ashford where the chemo is put through his port-a-cath. He then goes to London once every two months where he has a lumbar puncture which is where the chemo is put into his spine.

The family has also been fundraising for Young Lives Versus Cancer – a charity which has helped them a lot throughout Harley’s battle.

At one event hosted at the pub, the community donated more than £17,000 and Miss Russell says they will keep raising money where they can.

Leukaemia symptoms include: Fever or chills; persistent fatigue, weakness; frequent or severe infections; losing weight without trying; swollen lymph nodes, enlarged liver or spleen; easy bleeding or bruising; recurrent nosebleeds; tiny red spots on skin; excessive sweating, especially at night; bone pain or tenderness.