With their cheeky smiles and boundless enthusiasm, football-loving Alec and Aden O’Connor could easily be identical twins.
“The best thing about being a twin is that we always have each other’s backs,” says Alec, 11.
But in 2019, the twin from Fort Worth, Texas, was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a rare and aggressive form of blood cancer.
Three years later, when doctors confirmed he was in remission, it was news his mother, Rhea Scott, 49, had prayed for.
However, after a few months, he was back in hospital. In a cruel and frightening moment, Aden was told that he was now suffering from the same disease and is still undergoing chemotherapy.
Alec, who remains cancer-free (right), says: ‘Sometimes Aden (left) is scared that something bad will happen to him’
The twins, now “closer than ever”, are two of a number of extraordinary children from the US and UK who are featured in a new documentary, Kids Like Us, airing on Sky from today.
Filmed in association with the charity Children With Cancer UK, it reports on the moving, heart-warming and often heartbreaking experiences of children with the disease and the toll it takes on them, their friends and families, as well as the amazing medical advances that are saving their lives.
Now, in her first interview on the show, Rhea recounts her heartbreaking diagnoses and the twin bond that has helped them through their treatment.
“After Alec came out okay it was the best feeling in the world,” she told MailOnline.
‘I was a little upset that he finished his treatment during Covid, so he couldn’t go to the hospital and ring the bell.
‘But I felt like God had created a miracle for us.
‘Eleven months later, when Aden was diagnosed with the same cancer, I was devastated.
“My first words were: ‘God, I can’t do this again. ’”
Alarm bells rang when Aden suffered a head injury during football training that left him with severe headaches and nausea, two typical symptoms of a concussion. Pictured here, Aden (right) and Alec (left) during their treatment
It was only after Aden’s lymph nodes suddenly swelled to “the size of golf balls” a week later and “part of his stomach bulged out” that Rhea rushed him to hospital. Pictured here, Aden (right) and Alec (left) during their treatment
Experts believe that identical twins may be prone to the same diseases. Pictured here are Alec and Aden as babies
The first sign that Alec’s health might be failing came suddenly in October 2019, after she contracted what she believed to be strep A.
Symptoms typically include sore throat, headache, and fever, along with a fine, pink or red body rash that feels like sandpaper.
‘A week later it seemed to get worse, I couldn’t breathe. On my way to work, he said, “Mom, I’m in so much pain.”
“And I just looked at him and knew something was wrong.”
After urging doctors to run blood tests and scans, doctors discovered a huge mass growing in his chest and pressing on his windpipe.
In patients with leukemia, cancer cells may “cluster” around the thymus, a gland located in the neck, which can cause difficulty breathing.
Cells can also build up in lymph nodes in the chest that press on the windpipe, causing coughing and wheezing in children.
Rhea says, ‘Your white blood cell count is normally around 15,000. His was 500,000.
‘His diagnosis started a long process of two and a half years during which he had to go through horrible chemotherapy treatments and be sick.
Pictured here are Alec (left) and Aden (right) during Alec’s treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
“He also exploded like the Michelin man.”
Around 790 Britons and 6,550 Americans are diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia each year, which has a five-year survival rate of 70 per cent.
Of these, approximately one quarter have T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
It occurs when white blood cells begin to grow uncontrollably within the bone marrow before spreading to blood vessels and vital organs.
As white blood cells multiply rapidly, they can begin to clog blood vessels and vital organs, gradually shutting down the body’s functioning.
Experts believe that identical twins may be prone to the same diseases because of the shared blood supply in the womb.
Aware of this, Rhea asked Alec’s doctors if her brother could be vulnerable to the same thing. They told her no, or at least that it would be very, very unlikely.
In 2023, Aden suffered a head injury during soccer practice that left him with painful headaches and nausea, both typical signs of a concussion.
But within a week, his lymph nodes had swollen to “the size of golf balls” and “part of his stomach was sticking out,” leading Rhea to jump to the worst possible conclusion and rush him to the hospital.
In 2019, Alec, from Fort Worth, Texas, was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a rare and aggressive form of blood cancer. In a cruel and horrific twist, in 2023 Aden was told he was now suffering from the same disease. He is still undergoing chemotherapy.
“It scared the shit out of me,” he says.
Once the tests were completed, both she and Aden were taken to a separate hospital room.
“As soon as they told me the doctor was coming to talk to you, I started crying. I knew,” she said.
‘I was hysterical. I said, ‘I can’t go through this shit again. You don’t know what I’ve been through in the last two years.’
And Aden has suffered from a more aggressive form of the same disease, battling pancreatitis, brain hemorrhages, high levels of magnesium, sodium and blood pressure.
Leukemia has also attacked her liver and spleen, Rhea says.
“Alec received it when he was seven, almost eight, while Aden was ten. Alec’s chemotherapy was much easier than Aden’s,” he adds.
‘I also think, because when children are younger, they are not aware of death, they think: ‘I’m just sick.’
The twins, now “closer than ever”, are two of the extraordinary children from the US and UK who are featured in a new documentary, Kids Like Us, airing on Sky from today. Pictured, the premiere of Kids Like Us
“Eleven months later, when Aden was diagnosed with the same cancer, I was devastated. My first words were, ‘God, I can’t do this again,'” Rhea says.
‘In Aden’s case, he is conscious, and that’s what made it harder for me and for him, having seen what his brother went through.
“Reliving that has been terrifying for all of us.”
Alec, who remains cancer-free, also says: ‘Sometimes Aden is afraid something bad will happen to him.
‘I help him by asking him to calm down and breathe deeply.
“I’ve already gone over it. I can tell you what’s going to happen so you can prepare.”
For Aden, who faces two more years of chemotherapy, his twin’s support is clearly crucial.
“When I was diagnosed, my first thought was, ‘I’m going to be okay.’ Seeing that Alec survived, I know I’m going to be okay, too.”
According to the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, more children are diagnosed with cancer today than ever before and the number has increased by more than 15 per cent since the 1990s.
Currently, the NHS diagnoses around 1,600 children under 15 each year.
However, pediatric cancer receives only four percent of research funding.
In addition to Alec and Aden, the documentary also follows the lives of seven-year-old Dulcie, 10-year-old Harry and Leighton, 11-year-old Tia, 12-year-old Zuza, and 16-year-old Eve.
Now, in her first interview on the show, Rhea recounts her heartbreaking diagnoses and the twin bond that got them through treatment. Pictured here, Alec and Aden with their mother, Rhea.
In addition to Alec and Aden, the documentary also follows the lives of seven-year-old Dulcie, 10-year-old Harry and Leighton, 11-year-old Tia, 12-year-old Zuza, and 16-year-old Eve.
Their frank accounts of their struggles are as heartbreaking as they are moving.
Harry, from Fife, was diagnosed with ganglioglioma, a rare type of brain tumour, in 2020.
“I still have my tumor,” she told the documentary.
“One day, when I woke up, I had to go for surgery and they found out I had a brain tumor and I’ve been blind ever since. It’s a tragedy.”
Heartbreakingly, Harry didn’t tell his parents when he started losing his sight because he didn’t want to worry them.
“The annoying brain tumor took away part of my vision,” he added.
“It’s very hard to be blind. I wish the brain tumor didn’t affect my head.”
Meanwhile, Dulcie was diagnosed with neuroblastoma two years ago, when she was five years old.
“I was vomiting a lot of blood, as if it were coming from my nose but through my mouth. I’ve had it since I was four years old and now I’m seven,” she said.
“I’m not rid of it yet, but Mom and I keep saying we need to kick cancer in the ass.”
Kids Like Us is available to stream on Sky and NOW