Local boy shines in Piccadilly: Oliver Revagliatte, the face of latest GOSH campaign

Seven-year-old Gibraltarian Oliver Revagliatte saw himself, larger than life, on the Piccadilly Circus screen in London as the face of Great Ormond Street Hospital’s latest advertising campaign.

His journey from diagnosis with a life-threatening illness last March to recovery is now at the heart of a major campaign by Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) that focuses on ensuring children do not lose their childhood during long hospital stays.

The idea to use Oliver’s journey to help raise funds for the hospital came after the Revagliatte family was thanking staff at GOSH for everything they had done for them.

“We asked them if there was anything we could do for them in return,” said Christian Revagliatte, Oliver’s father.

“And they said no, not really, but hold that thought. And then they asked us if we wanted to be part of a rebranding campaign for the website and for the hospital itself. And we said, yes.”

As the campaign was put together, the family realised the scale of what they were embarked on, something they had not anticipated initially.

"They were asking us if [for example] we were okay if Oliver would be on billboards and tube station adverts and so forth.”

“And then, a couple of weeks ago, they called us and said that they had secured a spot in the Piccadilly Circus lights.”

“We were over the moon because he would be actually really excited about seeing himself on those screens. They said that if we wanted to go down there, they would film us and make the whole experience public.”

“It's been really easy, to be honest, to be part of the campaign. We just told our story, and they've done the rest of it.”

“But nonetheless, we are doing our best to share our experience and to assist with the charity wherever possible,” he added.

The campaign underscores the importance of holistic care in paediatric oncology.

This includes educational programs, physiotherapy, and dedicated play teams that ensure children like Oliver can continue to learn, play, and grow even while undergoing treatment.

Some of the children are in hospital for a number of years, making this charity and the work they do imperative “so that every child doesn’t lose their experience of childhood, whatever the disease may be,” said Mr Revagliatte.

The visit to Piccadilly Circus comes after a tumultuous five months for the young boy, affectionately known as Oli, who will be back on the Rock in less than a month and back to living his normal life.

In mid-March Oliver started experiencing severe abdominal pain. Initial consultations with the GP pointed towards a common stomach bug as there was one going around at the time. But the symptoms persisted and a week later he was no better.

Further investigations were ordered by the GHA and an ultrasound revealed a large mass which was initially diagnosed as an appendicular abscess.

Despite treatment with intravenous antibiotics, his condition worsened. The pain became unbearable, and his overall health started to decline.

A second ultrasound showed that the mass had doubled in size and the little boy was then transferred to a specialist in Malaga, where another ultrasound and MRI were performed. The results showed that the mass appeared to be a malignant growth, suspected to be a form of cancer.

“We were devastated, as you can imagine, because the rate at which it was growing and the pain which was exponentially growing was just terrible, to be honest,” he said.
“And, for us, the dark thoughts coming to your mind and it was like ‘how long can he carry on like this?’”

With his condition rapidly deteriorating, Oliver needed to get to London for more comprehensive testing and treatment but he was too unwell to fly commercially. The GHA organised an air ambulance to transport Oliver and his mother to Great Ormond Street Hospital, while his father flew commercial.

Upon arrival at GOSH, Oliver underwent a series of invasive tests and the oncology team identified the mass as Burkitt's lymphoma, a fast-growing blood cancer.

Despite the grim diagnosis, Burkitt's lymphoma is known for its responsiveness to treatment, offering a glimmer of hope to the family.

In addition, he underwent treatment for peripheral issues that were being caused by the mass, such as having to drain his kidneys because they weren't draining properly.

“Burkitt’s lymphoma is the better of the two to have. It is a very fast-growing cancer, which is not bad in a way because fast growing tumours are easier to dissolve,” he said.

But it was also the other problems the tumour was creating, including obstructing his blood system, leading to a clot in his leg.

“But the doctors nonetheless are wonderful. We had an array of doctors available and they came in almost every hour to see how he was doing,” he said.

“The treatment that he was receiving for these specific issues was being resolved.”
“We had oncologists, haematologists, neurologists, pain specialists, heart doctors even to check on his heart everything.”

“The care we received in Great Ormond Street was world class.”

“We never anticipated that it was going to be at that level. We had heard of the hospital being renowned for the quality of treatment, but we never expected it to be this high.”

Once they had the diagnosis, Oliver began chemotherapy immediately. He has had five courses of chemotherapy. Each course has been different.

The first round, known as the threshold course, is designed to halt the growth of the tumour and was effective with the mass almost disappeared after that round itself.

Subsequent rounds, though more aggressive, aimed to eradicate the disease completely. The side effects were severe: Oliver's immune system was completely depleted, he was nauseous, he had a tube for feeding, he had ulcers around his mouth and he could not even swallow his own saliva.

“It was really bad. So that was probably the trough of the whole experience. That was the lowest point, which was towards the end of April and half of May,” he said.

“After that he began to improve. The following rounds were easier on him. The body becomes more resilient to the actual treatment.”

“Here we are today, basically looking at a perfectly healthy boy who's recovering from a very bad experience.”

Despite these challenges, Oliver has been himself, with his father describing him as his usual charming and energetic self.

“He is really happy all the time. He has had times when he was really low but, most of the time, he has been really brave, taking everything as it comes.”

Oliver has finished all his treatment the family hopes to return to the Rock within the next two to three weeks.

To support the cause Oliver stands behind and is the face of, go to https://www.gosh.org/donate/