An Irvine schoolboy battling cancer has been told he has entered remission.
Five-year-old Ace Ward was diagnosed with B-Cell Acute Lymphobastic Leukaemia on Thursday, January 23.
Last week, after months of gruelling treatment, mum and dad Vicky and Brian were waiting for Ace's latest test results.
At 5pm on Friday they were told that the numbers hadn't come back.
But at around 8pm, his nurse Emily called the family with the incredible news - Ace was in remission.
Vicky said: "We were absolutely delighted. We weren't expecting it.
"A lot of people think he's alright now, but he is nowhere near alright. He's basically put one foot on the ladder."
It's the first time since his diagnosis that the family have had an indication that the treatment is working, and means they may not need to look at transplants or other medication available elsewhere.
Vicky said she is hopeful that Ace will complete his frontline Leukaemia treatment in the next six months, but they are still at the start of what will be a long journey to recovery.
Vicky said: "I'm just glad that he's got somewhere and the chemo is working.
"We spoke about it in the beginning, do we get excited, should we celebrate. Obviously Ace is high risk.
"Brian said 'Ace deserves everything to be celebrated'.
"We need to spend the next two-and-a-half-years keeping him in treatment."
Vicky said Ace doesn't really ask questions, he just gets up and gets on with it.
The St Mark's schoolboy starts interim maintenance this week, for ten weeks, followed by another block - which, Vicky said, involves them giving his body as much as it can possibly take without shutting down.
She said: "His mouth will all break-out, his feet will collpase, he'll probably be back in his wheelchair, but he'll still be smiling because that's the kind of kid he is."
If there are no delays, then he will have his central line tube removed.
READ MORE: St Mark’s smash challenge and raise an ‘Ace’ £3,500
He might have been able to go back to school, but with the coronavirus it is less likely now.
Vicky said: "The next two blocks are going to be really difficult.
"You can catch anything, even if it's just a bug it can kill you.
"So we just need to be careful, and keep him away from everybody, and then hopefully, by Christmas, he can lead a pretty much normal life."
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article