FRIENDS and family have rallied round to support a four-year-old boy fighting a rare type of cancer.

Brave Sam Cooke has already undergone 12 hours of surgery to help him beat a tumour which developed on one of his kidneys and attacked his heart.

Although the life-threatening growth wasn't spotted until late on, Sam has responded well to the surgery, as well as to radiotherapy and chemotherapy.

His parents, Sara and Paul of Deansgate in Ellesmere Port, have received medical advice from around the world.

Friends held a 24-hour darts marathon at the Travellers Rest pub in Little Sutton to raise money for Sam to visit Santa in Lapland and, in his name, for cancer research.

Mrs Cooke said: 'It all started when Sam was three and was refusing his food. We tried everything, but something wasn't right. So we went back and forth to the doctors and health visitors.'

Then he picked up a stomach bug and went to the Countess of Chester Hospital for a scan. A few days later, Sam was urinating pure blood.

On April 12, the day before his fourth birthday, a further scan showed he had a Wilm's Tumour - a rare infants' cancer of the kidney.

Former teacher Mrs Cooke said: 'The next day Alder Hey Children's Hospital in Liverpool found the tumour had gone up to his heart, but not into it.

'It has five stages of seriousness, five being the worst. A biopsy confirmed he was stage three, but he had stage four treatment because of his heart.

'Sam had six weeks of chemotherapy and responded well. It shrank the cancer and killed it.

'Then on June 16 he had 12 hours of surgery to remove his right kidney and clear his body of the disease. He went on radiotherapy but couldn't have the full amount as his heart isn't very strong.'

She added: 'We've had medical advice from Philadelphia and Italy because his case was so unusual.

'This tumour affects two to three year-olds, and he was almost four at the time.

'Every step of the way doctors say they have never seen a case like his before.'

Sam, who attends Woodlands Infants School, is back on chemotherapy, receiving a dose every 21 days.

'He has battled through it so bravely, we are all so proud of him,' said Mrs Cooke.