We want to save Benny so he can be with his sister

AS BRAVE Benny hugs his sister Zara, his one wish is to stay alive just to be with her.

- EXCLUSIVE BY LUCY LAING

Zara and Benny have been inseparable since his diagnosis

From the moment Zara, now two, was born they have been inseparable.

Benny Bahmanizad was diagnosed with the aggressive childhood cancer neuroblastoma three weeks before Zara was born.

Now his parents are fundraising for treatment in Rome in a bid to keep him alive — and by his sister's side.

Mother Nicola, 37, who has taken leave from her job as a tax adviser to look after her son, said: “Zara has been the best medicine for Benny — she has really kept him going throughout all this.

“He doesn’t want to leave her side and we are desperate to send him to Italy for treatment to help save his life.”

Benny, four, was diagnosed in February 2023, just days after his second birthday.

Nicola lives in Durham with husband Daniel, 39, who owns a takeaway food restaurant. She said: “Benny had been picking up a lot of viruses at nursery and had started to lose weight.

“We knew there was something wrong and took him to the GP several times.

“Then he developed a limp in his left leg and we took him to A&E.”