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The Wanted's Tom Parker welcomes new baby amid cancer treatment

Photo credit: Mark Cuthbert - Getty Images
Photo credit: Mark Cuthbert - Getty Images

From Cosmopolitan

Tom Parker, one fifth of boyband The Wanted, has welcomed his second child into the world with his wife Kelsey. This happy news comes at a very difficult time for the couple, as Tom recently shared his heartbreaking diagnosis of an inoperable brain tumour aged just 32. They already have a one-year-old daughter, Aurelia, together.

Although Tom and Kelsey, are yet to publicly confirm the news, Tom's bandmate, Max George (who is currently on Strictly Come Dancing) revealed they were overjoyed with the birth of their son in a recent interview. Speaking on Lorraine, Max praised his friend for showing immense strength over the last few months.

"I spoke to him yesterday and he’s doing good, he’s doing great," Max told host Lorraine Kelly. "Kelsey gave birth to their second child last week. He’s a fighter, Tom will be alright." He added, "If you’re watching by the way, mwah, I love you all."

Tom opened up about the shock diagnosis on Instagram a couple of weeks ago, telling followers of his decision to do one interview in order to "let everyone know the facts in our own way".

"Hey guys, you know we’ve both been quiet on social media for a few weeks and it’s time to tell you why," Tom wrote on social media. "There’s no easy way to say this but I’ve sadly been diagnosed with a Brain Tumour and I’m already undergoing treatment. We decided, after a lot of thought, that rather than hiding away and trying to keep it a secret, we would do one interview where we could lay out all the details and let everyone know the facts in our own way. We are all absolutely devastated but we are gonna fight this all the way."

The singer continued on to share that he hoped to receive "love and positivity", while raising awareness. "We don’t want your sadness, we just want love and positivity and together we will raise awareness of this terrible disease and look for all available treatment options. It’s gonna be a tough battle but with everyone’s love and support we are going to beat this."

During the couple's interview with OK! magazine, Tom and Kelsey confirmed that heartbreakingly, the tumour was discovered to be a grade four glioblastoma – and "the worst case scenario". The report adds that life expectancy for such an illness typically ranges from 3 to 18 months, with the median length of time being a year.

Speaking about how they've been coping since the diagnosis, Tom told the publication, "I think Kelsey has come to terms with it better than me. It’s so consuming. It’s so hard and it’s all I can think about."

Kelsey added, "It still doesn’t feel real. I don’t think Tom will ever process this information. It’s horrendous. Watching your partner go through this is so hard, because how can I tell him to not let it consume him? I take his phone away from him, because otherwise he will sit there and Google things and then end up in a hole. The more you Google, the worse possible stuff it throws at you, and that’s not good for anyone." He is currently undergoing life-prolonging treatment in London.

Photo credit: Frazer Harrison - Getty Images
Photo credit: Frazer Harrison - Getty Images

They explained that Tom had suffered a couple of seizures, the first being in July, before being told the devastating news and that tragically he received the news alone, as Kelsey wasn't allowed into the hospital for his MRI appointment due to COVID-19.

He also shared that he's trying to remain optimistic: "I need everyone’s love and positivity. I am going to fight this. We are already exploring alternative treatments and looking at clinical trials both here and abroad, and our friends have been doing research. There are so many stories of people who were given a bad prognosis and are still here five, ten, even fifteen years later. We’re going to fight this all the way."

Our thoughts are with Tom, Kelsey and Aurelia during this incredibly difficult time. We're sending all our best wishes.

Cosmopolitan UK's November issue is out now and you can SUBSCRIBE HERE.

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