Family Focus

The sudden death of the young son of the Tory leader, David Cameron, has highlighted in a very public way the tremendous difficulties faced by families with children who have life threatening illnesses.

The prospect of losing them is devastating for all family members.

On this Family Focus this evening, Sarah Travers looks at the experience of the Hoey family.

Six-year-old Cavan Hoey is battling a combination of extremely rare disorders in Bristol Royal hospital for children. 

He was a perfectly healthy little boy up until a year ago, when he failed to recover from a bout of glandular fever and became extremely unwell.

His grandparents, Terry and Maureen Hoey from Belfast talk about Cavan's disorders and how they are trying to raise awareness of the conditions.

Liz Osbourne talks to Sarah Travers

Sarah also speaks to Liz Osbourne from the children's cancer charity Clic Sargent, which is helping the Hoey family deal with Cavan's illness. For more information you can visit their website.

If you would like to find out more about Cavan's conditions and his battle to get better, visit the Cavan Tommy Hoey Trust website:

http://the-cavan-tommy-hoey-trust.org/