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Jean-Christophe Novelli has heartbreakingly reflected on seeing his son Valentino crying ‘tears of blood’ at six weeks old after being born with cancer.

The French chef, 62, welcomed his son Valentino, now seven, with his wife Michelle Kennedy in 2016, and their baby was quickly diagnosed with stage four cancer.

At six weeks old, Valentino battled stage four neuroblastoma, a rare and aggressive form of cancer, and underwent two years of chemotherapy to overcome the disease.

Reflecting on his son’s illness, Jean-Christophe has told how it was a ‘very difficult’ time and devastatingly reflected on seeing his son ‘crying tears of blood’ due to the disease.

Appearing on The Matt Haycox Show podcast, he detailed: ‘It was very, very difficult, and it’s still very, very difficult. 

Emotional: Celebrity chef Jean-Christophe Novelli (pictured in 2005) has reflected on seeing his son Valentino crying 'tears of blood' at six weeks old after being born with cancer

Emotional: Celebrity chef Jean-Christophe Novelli (pictured in 2005) has reflected on seeing his son Valentino crying ‘tears of blood’ at six weeks old after being born with cancer

‘It’s very unfair anybody ends up having cancer, but especially when you are six weeks old, it is beyond anything you can believe.

‘It was horrific, our helpless little boy, who was so, so small, had red tears coming out. He was literally crying tears of blood.

‘And, the thing is we were not ready. If you know something bad is gonna happen, you can prepare yourself, but when we found out, you have no idea how many times my wife and I were in tears. But, we had to stay strong for our family.’

Speaking to host and entrepreneur Matt Haycox, Jean-Christophe went on to explain how Valentino was first diagnosed after they found a lump on his neck. 

‘My wife and I are both very sensitive and I remember Valentino was six weeks old, and she was sleeping with him to make sure he got fed every two hours,’ he said.

‘I came over to give her a kiss, as usual. And, I noticed when she was feeding him that he had something on his neck. At that stage, it didn’t feel like a lump – it was barely there, and if my wife and I weren’t so sensitive, we would have never spotted.

‘It’s hard to describe to other parents, but it was like little spots, and touching it felt bizarre.

‘So what is it? Obviously, we very quickly take him to the doctor, and he was diagnosed with neuroblastoma, stage four.’

Heartbreaking: The French chef, 62, welcomed his son Valentino, now seven, with his wife Michelle Kennedy in 2016, and their baby was quickly diagnosed with stage four cancer

Heartbreaking: The French chef, 62, welcomed his son Valentino, now seven, with his wife Michelle Kennedy in 2016, and their baby was quickly diagnosed with stage four cancer

Jean-Christophe told how doctors told them it was ‘too dangerous’ to touch or remove the fast-growing lump, meaning Valentino had to undergo chemotherapy.

He detailed a terrifying moment when Valentino had an allergic reaction in an MRI scan, revealing how a doctor saved his life by reopening his airways with a pen. 

He explained: ‘About five days after the diagnosis Valentino had to go through an MRI scanner at Dunstable hospital in Luton.

‘He was so small that the doctors had to give him Chroral, so he could sleep through the scanner.

‘However, he was allergic to that, and his tiny windpipe began to shut down, and he started to turn blue.

‘We were terrified and we thought we were about to lose him, but thankfully a doctor heard us calling, and realised the life or death nature of the situation. 

‘He rushed over, and used a Biro pen to reopen Valentino’s tiny airways, and save his life.’

Jean-Christophe – who also has sons Jean and Jacques with Michelle – said Valentino had chemotherapy for two years and described it as a ‘hard’ time for their family.

He heartbreakingly told of the severe emotional and physical toll it had on his wife Michelle, admitting he feared it would ‘kill’ her. 

‘The chemo treatment took two years, and it was so hard on our family. You really do see what extremes a parent can go to, in a situation like this,’ he said.

‘I had to continue to work, and my wife, Michelle devoted her time to caring for Valentino and our other two boys.

‘But, continuing my routine was not nice, and I saw my wife changing in front of my eyes. It looked like Michelle was absorbing the cancer, and getting my son free.

‘I saw her face changing, her hair becoming grey. She didn’t eat for two or three days, did not eat. Not even a piece of bread. She only drank water. She did not move.

Struggles: Jean-Christophe (pictured with Valentino and Michelle in 2018) told how it was a 'very difficult' time and devastatingly reflected on seeing his son 'crying tears of blood'

Struggles: Jean-Christophe (pictured with Valentino and Michelle in 2018) told how it was a ‘very difficult’ time and devastatingly reflected on seeing his son ‘crying tears of blood’

Devastating: He heartbreakingly told of the severe emotional and physical toll it had on his wife Michelle (both pictured in May 2018), admitting he feared it would 'kill' her

Devastating: He heartbreakingly told of the severe emotional and physical toll it had on his wife Michelle (both pictured in May 2018), admitting he feared it would ‘kill’ her

‘I could see the connection between them. It’s hard to explain, but it felt that her soul was inside him and swallowing the cancer herself.

‘And, as Valentino looked stronger, Michelle looked weaker, and I feared the physical and emotional toll she was under would kill her.’

Speaking about his own struggles, Jean-Christophe claimed he was dropped from around 70 per cent of his jobs while his son was going through treatment. 

He said: ‘On top of what my family was going through, I started losing jobs as they thought they wouldn’t get their money’s worth out of me while my child was fighting cancer.

‘That really did make life harder still. And, that was completely unexpected.’

However, after two years of chemotherapy treatment, Valentino was given the all-clear and Jean-Christophe described it as one of the ‘happiest moments’ of his life. 

‘I want to say the biggest thank you to the NHS, they were all fantastic for saving our boy’s life,’ he added.

‘The experience we’ve been through makes you realise how very fortunate we were, because some families are not fortunate.’

Jean-Christophe told how Valentino being born with cancer caused him to develop 15q13.3 Microduplication Syndrome – a rare genetic disorder where there is extra piece of chromosome 15, which can cause learning difficulties.

He said: ‘The cancer Valentino beat will have drastic consequences for his whole life. Firstly, he is autistic, but he’s not just autistic, he also has several learning disabilities.

Family: Jean-Christophe - who also has sons Jean and Jacques with Michelle - said Valentino had chemotherapy for two years and described it as a 'hard' time for their family

Family: Jean-Christophe – who also has sons Jean and Jacques with Michelle – said Valentino had chemotherapy for two years and described it as a ‘hard’ time for their family

Recovery: However, after two years of chemotherapy, Valentino was given the all-clear and Jean-Christophe (pictured in 2018) described it as one of the 'happiest moments' of his life

Recovery: However, after two years of chemotherapy, Valentino was given the all-clear and Jean-Christophe (pictured in 2018) described it as one of the ‘happiest moments’ of his life

‘As a young baby, his immune system spent so much time fighting the cancer, it wasn’t able to develop like most babies’ do, so he actually stopped creating his normal chromosomes.

‘That caused a very rare chromosomal disorder called 15q13.3 Microduplication Syndrome, which is basically an extreme type of physical and psychological disorder, that means he will need to be cared for his whole life.

‘It breaks my heart, but he will never experience so many things we all take for granted.’

Jean-Christophe said Valentino is unable to tell the difference between hot and cold and is nonverbal, telling how they have adapted to look after their son. 

He said: ‘He will never speak a word – not even to me or his mum or his brothers – we know that. We’ve tried and tried, but that’s absolutely guaranteed.

‘But, he lets us know when he’s sad, or happy, or when he wants something to eat, as he screams and makes noises, and you learn what he means.

‘And, it brings joy to my heart to say that Valentino is a happy seven year old boy. He loves his food, he loves swimming, and he loves music. And we love him so much.

‘And, he is safe, as at least one of my wife and I are with him at all times, and always will be, and our other two boys are amazing with him. We all jump anywhere and everywhere for him.

‘So, it’s a different life, and we are busy working hard to adapt to the situation. But, it’s 24 hours a day, and it will be for the rest of our lives.’

Jean-Christophe Novelli has previously spoken about how raising Valentino is an ‘enormous challenge’.

Hard: Jean-Christophe Novelli and his wife Michelle have previously spoken about how raising Valentino, who is autistic, is a 'challenge', as he has a rare genetic disorder due to his cancer

Hard: Jean-Christophe Novelli and his wife Michelle have previously spoken about how raising Valentino, who is autistic, is a ‘challenge’, as he has a rare genetic disorder due to his cancer

The chef and his wife described caring for their son as a 24-hour job, with Michelle worrying how he will communicate with others when he is older. 

Appearing on Loose Women in 2021, Jean-Christophe said: ‘Valentino is an amazing boy but it is an enormous challenge and something we had to learn to adapt. There is not a single day off. 

‘Sometimes it can be 24 hours a day. I think we should not be ashamed, it is what it is. We have had to learn a lot. The thing is, we want to give him so much.’ 

Speaking about his communication, Michelle added: ‘The future is far away but you can’t help but get your head in a spin, thinking of your child not being able to communicate forever. When you’ve got that nagging at the back of your mind, it is quite difficult.’ 

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This post first appeared on Daily mail

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