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A brave 12-year-old Warwickshire boy – set to travel to America for life saving treatment to treat his rare form of cancer – is battling to raise £10,000 so that his mum and dad can join him.

The NHS is funding Adrian Secareanu’s medical care in Florida to rid him of Mucoepidermoid Carcinoma – a tumour in his neck and jaw.

And charity Kds ‘N’ Cancer has launched an appeal, supported by Adrian, to raise the cash to fund his parents Corina and Constantin to stay with him while he undergoes proton beam therapy at the University of Florida in Jacksonville.

Adrian, from Rugby, is expected to spend at least three months in the US.

Adrian, who celebrated his 12th birthday in March, said: “This is an opportunity to stop the tumour completely and get back to a normal life. Having the Proton Therapy will be a step closer to achieving that.”

He was diagnosed with the rare form of cancer after his concerned mum, Corina took him to the dentist when she discovered a lump in his cheek in December 2012.

Dismissed at first as an infection- the persistent growth would not go away – and the Princethorpe College pupil was referred to a specialist who confirmed the family’s worst fears.

Corina, a 48-year-old nurse at Rugby’s St Cross Hospital said: “You think something like this wouldn’t happen to you and that it can’t touch you. But we now know this is not the case.”

The inspirational youngster had several operations at Coventry Hospital.

Constantin, a fork lift truck driver, aged 58, said: “He can become frightened and needs our support and encouragement. We need this funding to allow us to be with him over the coming months and help us keep things normal back home in the UK.

“I need to be strong for him. Adrian really deserves this opportunity. All children in this situation deserve that chance. Children are very resilient and Adrian copes with it better than I do.

“Hopefully we can help raise awareness of the condition because another child could have to go through the exact same situation as Adrian.

“Adrian is a wonderful child, very polite. We want to have his life back. He has hardly missed a day at school. They said he has been wonderful with it all.

“Once we realised Proton Therapy would help Adrian, I called Kids ‘N’ Cancer on the Friday and they were at our home the next day offering their support. You could not find better people to help us.”

Mike Hyman, founder of Kids ‘N’ Cancer, said: “We try to be there as an emotional crutch for the family and ensure the funding is reached as soon as possible. Time is important, so we try to help get the fundraising up and running as quickly as we can.

“Adrian’s parents work long hours and do everything they can to give him a good start in life. We are here to help them in any way we can.”

To support Adrian Secareanu in his fundraising effort, visit www.kidsncancer.co.uk or donate at www.justgiving.com/Adrain-Secareanu.