Last text from girl, 17, who died on first holiday after getting tonsillitis

07 September 2023 , 09:02

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Leah Rogers (left) with brother Ben and sister Becky (Image: Becky Rogers)

The heartbroken siblings of a teenager who died after returning home from her first parent-free holiday have revealed what she told them in some of her final texts.

Leah Rogers, 17, was struck down with what was believed to be a bad case of tonsillitis days after getting home to Briton Ferry in Wales from Palma Nova in Majorca last summer. However, her condition rapidly deteriorated and her family were baffled when doctors told them she had developed a rare immune disorder HLH, or haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis. And then that she had just hours to live.

As reported yesterday, Becky, 33, and Ben Rogers, 25, described to the Mirror the horror of watching their little sister die - and how they now both suffer from PTSD. Becky was due to go with her to Majorca but suffered a miscarriage the week before they were supposed to go and dropped out. Leah then went with a shared group of friends. Becky said: "I've still got messages on my phone where she's at the airport texting me 'I'm sad you're not here, wish you were here'. She sent me a message saying 'there'll be plenty of other times', which just breaks me to read now. I'm so glad she still went and had a ball. Really that was just a few days after she returned that she became unwell with the tonsillitis."

The three siblings were all very close (Supplied)

Leah's brother Ben said he's only been able to look at her texts in the last few weeks, and said her final messages highlight how rapidly she suddenly declined. He said: "It's been recently, the last three weeks or so that I've been able to look at Leah's texts. I was talking to her in the hospital. I was asking her what was going on, what they were saying, what she was doing. Although she wasn't up to a lot. How she was keeping herself busy. And from her to be replying normally to what happened in the end was...I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy."

Leah was put in intensive care in Princess of Wales Hospital, Bridgend, before being transferred to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham. Becky and Ben were raced up from Wales by a family friend to join their parents Hugh, and Kath, both 57, in the hours before Leah passed away in June last year. HLH is such a rarity that three doctors treating Leah at Bridgend had never come across it.

Baby boy has spent his life in hospital as doctors are 'scared' to discharge him

Ben was messaging Leah while she was in hospital (Supplied)

The teen's siblings were aware she was seriously ill, with her blood results - which led to her transfer to Birmingham - showing she was far more unwell than first thought, but had no idea how close she was to the end. Ben said: "It was one day. It was that one day I thought it was serious and she died that night. That's the bit that's affected me. The PTSD. I go from running around with my daughter at Playzone to getting that call from my mum.

"I couldn't even speak, I couldn't get the words out. I couldn't believe it. How I got home, I can't remember the drive. We were helpless. There's not a medical professional in the world who would have brought Leah back. For it to go from nothing to that, to the point where mum was hoping she had leukaemia. Who hopes their child has leukaemia? What does that mean? For it to get to that from nothing, it doesn't feel real. It hasn't sank in and I don't think it ever will."

The last photo of Becky and Leah, taken days before she went into hospital (Becky Rogers)

The family last year held a fundraiser which brought in around £20,000 for charity Histio UK, which is dedicated into researching HLH. This year, again to coincide with Leah's birthday (September 6) they are holding a fundraiser over the weekend.

Becky said: "We want to raise awareness of this condition. It's such a thin line between scaring people and making them aware this condition exists. We certainly wouldn't want anyone whose child comes down with a bout of tonsillitis to be panicking that they are going to get HLH and die. Also is that awareness that if they are not getting better and things are deteriorating, I guess push and insist on blood tests."

Becky holds Leah's hand before she died (Becky Rogers)

Becky added: "There is the question of could it have been picked up earlier? But there's no way because her symptoms were so similar to glandular fever. It all just escalated really quickly when her blood went Pete Tong."

This year's fundraiser takes place on Saturday (September 9) from 6.30pm at JK's in Briton Ferry. Tickets are £10 each and the evening will include live artists, raffles, games and a DJ. Tickets are available at JK's and any donations or payments to the charity can be made via PayPal to [email protected].

Ryan Merrifield