Young hockey player receives life-saving care from Evelina London

This time last year, hockey-loving Austin Hunter was a happy, healthy 12-year-old. He didn't know that within a few months his life would change forever.

In June 2024, Austin started to have leg pain. Next his ears and toes turned blue. He was taken to his local hospital in Surrey, and within a few hours his condition deteriorated.

Austin had sepsis, a life-threatening reaction to an infection. It happens when your immune system, the body’s defence system, overreacts to an infection and starts to damage your body's own tissues and organs. Symptoms are hard to spot, but may include fast breathing, feeling very cold to touch, or a rash that does not fade when you press it.

He was taken to Evelina London Children's Hospital by the South Thames Retrieval Service. Upon his arrival, 8 clinicians were waiting for him, ready to deliver life-saving care.

Austin had a less than 5% chance of survival. Warwick Hunter, Austin's dad, said: "That night we were told it was highly likely that Austin would lose this battle, and to prepare for the worst possible outcome.

During the first 6 hours, it was incredible to witness the dedication, focus and determination across the team. Ultimately, he survived and as the sun rose he was still with us, still fighting.

 

"I can never thank all of the staff enough for giving us our son back."

Thanks to the commitment and expertise of the people caring for him, Austin woke up after several days in a coma. He remained in our paediatric intensive care unit for 10 weeks, where his organs slowly started to recover, and his limbs regained circulation.

Austin had weekly surgeries and to date, he has had over 25 operations at our children's hospital.

The journey wasn't over yet for Austin. His left foot remained infected and continued to make him unwell. Following lots of discussion, Austin's family made the difficult decision to have his lower left leg amputated.

Following Austin's amputation, his mum Holly said: "We knew his left foot was making him ill. Following the amputation, he began to grow stronger, he started to thrive, and Austin was back to his old determined self."

After major reconstructive surgery on his right foot, Austin managed to make it home for Christmas. Since then, he has now also opted to amputate his right foot.

Recently Austin had a pair of prosthetic legs fitted. These new legs will help him get back to doing his favourite hobbies, such as playing hockey and cheering on his favourite football team, Brighton and Hove Albion.

Austin, now 13, said: "I will still need more surgery, but it will be the best chance for me to get back to my activities.

It is important that people know what sepsis is and what the symptoms are.

The sports-loving teen will also be cheering on his dad who is planning to take on the London Marathon in 2026. Thanks to incredible fundraising from friends and family, so far Warwick has raised over £50,000, most of which will go to Evelina London Children's Charity.

This week Warwick, Austin, Holly, and Austin's sister, Georgina, presented a cheque to Evelina London Children's Charity. Some of the consultants and nurses who played a played a huge role in Austin's recovery also attended the presentation.

Warwick said: "It was a raft of specialists who cared for Austin: consultants, nurses, nutritionists, physiotherapists, play specialists, everyone was involved.

Over 100 different people were involved in Austin's wrap around care.

Evelina London is 1 of only 2 specialist children's services in London, and our expert teams work seamlessly together to coordinate and deliver the highest quality of care.

Jennie Lambert, paediatric intensive care consultant and Austin's clinician, said: "Austin was critically ill with multi-organ failure when he came to us. He defied the odds in surviving that night.

"We meet a lot of extremely unwell children, but Austin is a truly remarkable young man, who has inspired us all in his unwavering determination to recover and help others."

To support Warwick's fundraising, visit his GoFundMe page.

Our dedicated charity, Evelina London Children's Charity, helps us to provide compassionate, trailblazing care for children and their families, including supporting the South Thames Retrieval Service to transport critically ill children from local hospitals to intensive care units.

Together with our charity, we can continue to transform children and families' experiences of care.