Queensland family given heartbreaking news about 3yo son

After undergoing seemingly endless rounds of chemotherapy, Paddy and his parents were told things were looking positive. But the family was dealt a crushing blow.

One Queensland family are being faced with a horrifying reality – saying goodbye to their three-year-old boy for the last time.

One Queensland family is being faced with a crushing reality – saying goodbye to their three-year-old boy for the last time.

Patrick Moloney, who the family affectionately call Paddy, was what they believed at the time to be a colic-y baby. It wasn’t unusual for him to scream and cry in the middle of the night.

But, Chris Moloney, Paddy’s father, said it was a night back in April 2023 when their lives changed forever. The family was already struggling with Jackie, Paddy’s mum, recovering from a heart attack in January.

“Jackie changed a nappy and there was just a small stringy bit of what looked like blood,” Chris told news.com.au.

Patrick Moloney, who the family affectionately call Paddy, was what was thought at the time to be a colic-y baby. Picture: Supplied

“But Paddy had spent the whole day eating watermelon so we sort of thought ‘okay, maybe it’s just that’.”

But the following day Jackie did another nappy change and, not too long after, found Paddy hiding behind a chair grunting as if he was trying to go to the toilet.

She thought it was weird and so she changed his nappy again. She checked the first one, which had been changed in the dark, and there was more blood.

Jackie called Chris, who was at work, and the family raced to Redlands Hospital, where they took turns reassuring Paddy while in the emergency department. Chris had just handed over care to his partner and gone home to sleep when he got a phone call. Doctors had done an ultrasound on Paddy’s abdomen.

“I raced back up and they took us to a quiet room and I knew it was bad news,” he recalled.

“And they just said they’d found a mass on his kidney but didn’t know what it was.”

Doctors said there were several options, but they didn’t want to guess, so they transferred the family to Queensland Children’s Hospital, where they had the equipment to investigate further.

Paddy was rushed to hospital after his mum, Jackie, discovered blood in his nappy. Picture: Supplied.

The family was given devastating news – Paddy had an aggressive and rare cancer. Picture: Supplied.

Paddy was immediately put under general anaesthetic and a CT scan was performed. While the family waited, they looked into possible options. They hoped it was Wilm’s tumour – a reasonably common cancer in kids with a 95 per cent survival rate – rather than something worse.

“We were praying for that, as horrible as it sounds to pray for cancer, but that was our best option,” he said.

But when doctors came in, Chris’s heart sank. He could tell by the doctor’s demeanour that it wasn’t Wilm’s. It was something much worse. Paddy, before he’d even turned three years old, had a malignant rhabdoid sarcoma.

It is a rare childhood tumour that starts in the kidneys, but can appear in soft tissues or the brain. It mostly affects toddlers and, in the United States, only 20 to 25 cases are diagnosed each year. Only 27 per cent of sufferers make it to the five-year mark.

The family was devastated and Chris said he can’t remember those weeks following the news of Paddy’s cancer. But, he knew that he had to be strong for Jackie, Paddy and their two other children from a previous relationship. He was also determined that his little boy would beat the odds.

The family was eventually told Paddy's diagnosis was terminal. Picture: Supplied.

The brave little boy was quickly fitted with a central line and 10 rounds of chemotherapy over 30 weeks began. The family was constantly in the emergency room each time Paddy had a temperature – standard practice during chemotherapy. On low sleep, with Chris taking time off work to be with his family, and a sick and traumatised toddler, the Moloneys got positive news 12 weeks into treatment.

The lesions on Paddy’s kidneys had vanished. Surgery was scheduled to take out Paddy’s kidney and lymph nodes around it, and afterwards radiation started.

“We had two absolutely gruelling weeks of radiation because it was an 11am appointment,” Chris said.

“We had to starve him, so the last thing that he could eat was 1am and after that it was only water and even then two hours beforehand he couldn’t have that so he was just next level cranky.”

But, the hardest part for both Chris and Paddy was the general anaesthetic. Paddy knew what would be about to happen because of the room and he would scream – and when he woke up he could become combative until the medication wore off. Meanwhile, Chris had to hold his little boy as he went limp in his arms. It was something that triggered a “what if” in his mind.

Chris described his son as incredibly cheeky. Picture: Supplied.

Again, everything was looking positive. Doctors were quick to not give the family false hope, but Paddy’s numbers after he competed the radiation and the chemotherapy were going in the right direction.

Then, last week, Paddy started complaining about pains in his stomach, screaming out about being uncomfortable. It was something Chris and Jackie hadn’t seen since he was recovering from surgery.

He was taken to hospital and doctors found faded spots on his lungs. A CT showed he had three tumours. Surgery was impossible and radiation would be torture. Paddy’s care was taken to palliative care and the family was told he likely wouldn’t see his fourth birthday in June.

The family have been left devastated – particularly Paddy’s siblings who are eight and seven – and haven’t come to terms with the situation, but Chris told news.com.au that he believes a person is only truly gone once they are forgotten. He doesn’t want anyone to forget his son’s name so he is sharing his family’s story.

The family have been left devastated – particularly Paddy’s siblings who are eight and seven. Picture: Supplied

Chris, Paddy's dad, doesn't want anyone to forget his little boy. Picture: Supplied.

He wants his son to be remembered for the kind of person that he is, saying his boy is “cheeky as hell” and that everyone in the hospital loved him to the point it was almost like he ran it.

“If he wants to do something, he’s gonna do it. He’ll throw a tantrum – which we’re sure are put on because he’ll lock himself in a room and if no one is responding to it he’ll come out to make sure someone is watching,” Chris said.

“He’s sweet to everyone. He’s been seeing me and his mum with tears in our eyes and he will come up, give us a kiss and ask what’s wrong. He has no concept of what is happening. He’s more worried about other people’s feelings.”

Chris said the family wants to create as many memories with Paddy as possible in the time they have left together, making all of his dreams come true.

A GoFundMe has been set up to help make this happen. So far, Paddy has been able to visit a fire station and use the hose, as well as visiting a police station, where they let him turn on the siren and meet a little police dog. The plan is to do something like this every day.

They are trying to make as many memories as possible – such as a trip to a fire station. Picture: Supplied.

Paddy loves excavators and machinery. Picture: Supplied.

Paddy loves machinery, such as diggers and excavators. Every time the family went to the hospital, they would drive past a construction site at the stadium and Paddy would see the big cranes and scream with excitement.

He also desperately wants to hold an octopus, and Chris really wants to organise Paddy to see a flyover of a World War II plane called the P-51 Mustang. Paddy first saw one in Lady Gaga’s ‘Hold My Hand’ film clip that was created for the Top Gun: Maverick film and instantly fell in love. He constantly shouts the lyrics to the song.

Chris has been adamant in saying he is grateful for every bit of support the family has received, and said he can’t fault the staff at Queensland Children’s Hospital.

It is his mission to make sure no one ever forgets his son.