A TYNEDALE schoolboy and his family have flown Stateside for tests to make sure he is still free of cancer.

Kian Musgrove (7), of Prudhoe, was diagnosed with aggressive neuroblastoma when he aged just 18 months and he has fought the disease for years, even surviving a relapse when the cancer returned in 2015.

The fight of the youngster, a pupil at Prudhoe West Academy, has caught the attention of many star names with X Factor judge Simon Cowell donating £25,000 towards the costly cancer treatment in America over the years. Kian is a local celebrity himself and was invited back to switch on the Christmas lights in Prudhoe in December.

The treatment in America in 2015 cost in excess of $750,000, and the family is again fund-raising for their latest trans-Atlantic trip.

Kian, his mother Kat and younger sister Leona set off for the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York on Monday morning where he will undergo a further set of tests to reveal if he is still free of the cancer, since his pioneering treatment ended in January 2018.

While in America, the family will be staying at the Ronald McDonald House in New York which provides temporary accommodation and care for families of children with cancer.

Kian’s mother, Kat, said: “I’m petrified. I know that even if Kian seems to be doing amazingly well, the cancer could still come back.

“This has happened before when he had a relapse in 2015. At that time, he looked well and everything seemed fine.

“But it turned out that the cancer had returned. Now, all those same emotions are coming back.

“Kian is looking amazing and he’s doing really well. He is happy, jumping and bouncing around. But it’s always in the back of my mind that the cancer has a high chance of returning.”

The Musgrove family are continuing to fund-raise to help cover the costs of treatment via the charity’s website, www.caringforkian.co.uk