A MIRACLE eight-year-old boy who was told he was not going to live through last Christmas has been given a new hope of life.

Little Julian Malankowska has battled with leukaemia since he was diagnosed with it in 2011 and was told his cancer was terminal - and would not live to see 2018.

The youngster, from Blackburn, left doctors baffled after they discovered his acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) had transformed into acute myeloid leukaemia, a treatable form of the cancer.

Aneta, Julian's mum, said doctors told her that her son's situation was the first of its kind and Julian was 'one in seven billion'.

She said: "We couldn't believe it, we had been told for months we had to prepare for the worst and prepare for Julian to die.

"I had to try and tell his four-year-old brother Leon what was going on, they both kept asking what heaven was, it's been so hard.

"He's been battling with the disease since he was two, he's had bone marrow transplants, chemotherapy, everything to try and make him better but nothing worked."

Leukaemia is a form of cancer in the white blood cells which forces the bone marrow to release large number of white cells before they are ready.

The cells do not have infection fighting properties of healthy white cells and if too many are created it decreases the number of red blood cells.

Julian had previously relapsed from former transplants and rounds of chemotherapy and was told the worst after treatment had not worked.

The youngster's body had gone through 25 rounds of chemo and had to relearn to walk due to the impact of the treatment.

However Aneta said Julian went back for more tests after Christmas and was told the cancer levels in his bone marrow had dropped by almost half, which had left medical professions stunned.

She said: "It was shocking, we had gone from accepting he was going to die to be told his cancer was treatable.

"His situation has had a massive impact on our lives.

"My head just couldn't take it - I've suffered from depression because of it.

"My husband, Maciej, had to give up his job as a machine operator so we could care for Julian and Leon, it's been very tough."

Aneta and Maciej moved over from Poland to Blackburn after Julian was first diagnosed and treated.

He was diagnosed a month after the couple were married in January 2011

Julian is staying at Manchester Children's Hospital while he is undergoing a round of chemotherapy, which if works, would give him a chance to try a bone marrow transplant and could leave him in remission.

Aneta said: "He's been very, very sad while going through all of this as you can imagine.

"He's not been like a normal eight-year-old, he periods when he rarely speaks to anyone and I'm thinking of getting him some sort of therapy to help him.

"He once said to me he 'wanted to die' because he was sick of being inside a hospital for so long.

"I have to explain to him that everything will be fine, he finally said to me the other day he trusted me and he believes that now.

"We just have to stay positive. I have to stay positive for him and for my family.

"There was a part of me that keeps thinking something bad will happen but we've got to stay strong."

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help with logistical costs. 

To donate, visit www.gofundme.com/help-me-survive-terminal-diagnosis