Hannah was just 17-year-old when she tragically passed away (Image: Birmingham Live WS)
Teenager Hannah Riddell sadly died just a week after she received the news that she was cancer-free.
It was in August 2024 when the 17-year-old discovered a lump the size of a golf ball under her arm. She was then taken straight to the hospital, where she was diagnosed with stage 4 Hodgkin’s lymphoma – a cancer which impacts the lymphatic system.
Hannah underwent six rounds of chemotherapy, and following the treatment, she was informed that she was in remission.
A trip to Majorca to celebrate the news was in the works. Unfortunately, things took a turn as Hannah’s condition got worse, and she tragically passed away a week later from suspected sepsis.
Her mother, Jill Mitcheson, shared: “Her dad and I were holding her hand, and I knew she was gone. It was just surreal like it was not really happening and she was going to wake up it happened so quickly, there was no warning,” reports Birmingham Live.
READ MORE: Heartbreaking tribute for teen who died of same cancer as mother and gran
“It was just the cruellest thing ever. Her whole life had been on hold. It was just the most devastating thing that could possibly happen.”
It was after a dinner with family and friends on August 10, 2024, that Hannah noticed something wrong. Jill, 44, recalled: “We were sitting in the garden because it was a nice sunny evening and she came down from her bedroom and said ‘mum I need to tell you something.’
“My heart dropped, and I thought, teenage girl, she better not be bloody pregnant. So I came into the kitchen and she said ‘Mum, I’ve got a lump under my arm’ and when we looked at the lump it was the same size as the size of a golf ball. It appeared very quickly.”
The next morning, Hannah was examined by a hospital doctor and underwent an ultrasound followed by a biopsy.
The 17-year-old recieved treatment at Royal Victoria Infirmary (Image: PA)
“When they were sat in the ultrasound, I saw them start to measure all the lumps there were quite a lot of them and I think it was at that moment I knew there was something no right about this,” explained Jill.
The family was informed of the heartbreaking news that it was Hodgkin’s lymphoma, and a scan revealed it was at stage 4B, signalling that the cancer had spread to various organs. The cancer found throughout her neck spread through to her torso and down to her groin.
Jill, who works as a carer, said: “Hannah took the news better than anybody else. She just got on with it and never wanted any pity.” Hannah was able to complete school at Ashington Academy Northumberland and planned to do a travel and tourism course at Newcastle College. However, those plans were put on hold after the cancer diagnosis.
Hannah began the first six rounds of chemotherapy on August 21 at Royal Victoria Infirmary. During the chemotherapy rounds, she suffered from multiple infections and, at a certain period, was “vomiting the entire time.”
Her boyfriend, Kieron Stokoe, 18, was by her side “every step of the way”. On January 7, they received the best possible news – the doctors announced that Hannah was in remission. But just seven days following a return to the hospital for routine tests, Hannah appeared “very pale” and was repeatedly sick. She struggled to breathe, seemed to have a seizure and then cried out in agony due to pain in her legs – the pain was so severe that her mum couldn’t even touch her.
The teen then had another fit, and an emergency team rushed to her side. Mum Jill recounted the distressing moments, saying: “Her eyes were rolling back in her head she was panicking. Her breathing was really laboured, and she was really struggling.” Shortly after, Hannah was transferred to critical care.
Jill added: “At this point, I knew she was ill, but they never said critical and I never for one minute thought we were going to lose her. Some time passed, maybe an hour, and nobody said anything and then a nurse came into the room and shut the door, she had tears in her eyes.”
“She sat down and she said ‘I’m so sorry Hannah is gone.’ I was confused because at no point it was mentioned that she had stopped breathing, her heart had stopped, anything. I looked at her in disbelief and I said ‘what do you mean she’s gone?’
“She said ‘I’m sorry. About 55 minutes ago, her heart stopped and she stopped breathing and we’ve been trying to resuscitate her all this time and I’m so sorry but she’s gone’. I said “I need to see her, I need to see her now.”
Jill and Hannah’s father Michael were taken into the critical care unit, where medical staff were still performing “brutal” heart compressions on Hannah. However, the teen’s mum confessed that she “knew she was gone”.
Jill paid tribute to her daughter, who she described as “wise” and “chatty”. She said: “She has always been older than her age. She has always been very wise. She was always very chatty, she talked very, very quickly at a very young age.
“She never really changed. She was always like that. She was like a second mother to her younger brother. She was so caring.”
The family have started a GoFundMe campaign, which has raised £4,766 out of the £5000 target to help provide “a beautiful send-off fitting for the incredible person she was.”
Speaking about the donations raised, Jill said: “It’s massively helped not just financially but just keeping us going, knowing how many people care for us as a family, for Hannah.
“Even in how cruel this whole situation is, it just gives me some kind of comfort from the fact that so many people cared and are willing to help, and it really has eased this whole situation.”
The family are currently waiting for an inquest to ascertain why Hannah passed away, reports The Mirror.
