A mother has slammed hospital bosses after medics failed to give her two-year-old daughter an urgent brain scan.
A report found that little Lara Willcox should have received an urgent MRI at Bath's Royal United Hospital (RUH).
Despite showing symptoms of a tumour, the youngster was placed on an 11-week waiting list.
She became so unwell waiting for the scan that she was rushed to Bristol Children's Hospital, where a scan confirmed the tumour.
Despite showing the early warning signs of having a brain tumour, such as early-morning vomiting, lethargy, neck pain and balance issues, little Lara was placed an an 11-week waiting list for an MRI scan
Despite showing the early warning signs of having a brain tumour, such as early-morning vomiting, lethargy, neck pain and balance issues, little Lara was placed an an 11-week waiting list for an MRI scan
A report found that little Lara Willcox should have received an urgent MRI at Bath's Royal United Hospital (RUH)
A report found that little Lara Willcox should have received an urgent MRI at Bath's Royal United Hospital (RUH)
The hospital has said staff had been given updated training.
Lara's mother, Aimee Willcox, said: 'I don't think they've learned from what we went through.'
Lara, from Paulton in Somerset was twice sent home from the hospital - in June and July 2016 - despite having early morning vomiting, lethargy, neck pain and balance issues, which are signs of a brain tumour.
She was placed on a waiting list for an MRI scan which was due to have taken place 11 weeks after she was first seen by doctors.
But she became so unwell that Ms Willcox took her to Bristol Children's Hospital where a scan identified a tumour.
She was sent to Florida for proton beam therapy.
Ms Willcox said she was worried the delay could have had a damaging cognitive effect on her daughter who is now four years old.
In 2017 a 15-week-old baby attended the RUH with signs of a growth in the head and also did not receive an urgent scan.
That child had a non-cancerous cyst removed following a routine out-patient appointment.
A report into that case found there was a missed opportunity to perform a scan which would have led to a diagnosis five days earlier.
Ms Willcox said she was worried the delay could have had a damaging cognitive effect on her daughter who is now four years old
Ms Willcox said she was worried the delay could have had a damaging cognitive effect on her daughter who is now four years old
The baby's mother, who wished to remain anonymous, said the cyst was '80 per cent of her brain'.
'They don't know how much brain she does have left and whether it will re-grow once the cyst has been drained.'
Ms Willcox said: 'I was assured... that the reason they did this report was to ensure no family went through the delay in diagnosis that we went through.
'So I was so shocked to find out it had happened again a year later.'
She added: 'I don't think they've learned from what we went through.
'I don't think they've changed their processes.'
A spokesman for the RUH said: 'Patient care and safety is our priority. We are sorry if that care does not always meet our very high standards.
'We follow NHS guidelines in aiming to reduce average diagnosis times of brain tumours in children to four weeks or less.
'We were determined to learn from the case of Lara Wilcox in 2016 and, following our investigation, we put in place a number of recommendations for our Paediatric Service.
'These include updated and mandatory training for staff on the signs and symptoms of brain tumours, and a quicker referral system of patients for brain scans.
'In the second case, our investigation noted that the baby was referred for an outpatient appointment within two weeks.
'We provided a cranial ultrasound scan on the day of that appointment and surgery the next day for a non-cancerous condition.'