A mum has told of her heartbreak after her son asked her if he was going to die, as his family prepares to take him on what could be his last holiday.

Tiny Sam Bundy has beaten all the odds to make the age of 10 – but had open heart surgery three times to get there.

The youngster was born with half a heart and has had as many as 60 operations connected with his condition.

Now his family are desperate to raise cash to take him on what could be his last holiday to Disneyland Paris.

Mum-of-eight Kymm Bundy told WalesOnline: “His first surgery was when he was three days old.

“That was horrendous at the time. I was numb.

“You get thrown into this situation and do not get time to catch your breath.

“I knew from the time I was 24 weeks pregnant that he had the condition. You think you’re prepared but you’re not.”

Little fighter Sam had his first surgery aged just three days, and has had more than 60 operations since

Sam, who is in constant pain, was born in Bristol because he was to be transferred to Birmingham Children’s Hospital.

There were no beds so the Hull City fan – whose hero is defender Michael Dawson – was taken to Guy’s Hospital, London.

After surgery Sam’s chest was left open because he was so small.

“I don’t really remember it, to be honest,” Kymm said.

“I just became desensitised. They said he had a 25% chance of survival. I was just interested in him surviving.”

His second major round of surgery was at five months old while the third when he was two-and-a-quarter years old.

“He really is a little trooper,” Kymm said.

“He is 10 years old and only the size of a four-year-old. But he is always smiling.

“He’s the cheekiest monkey. He is so cheeky and funny. He’s really into Star Wars .”

Sam, pictured on one of his many stays in hospital, is a 'little trooper' who loves Star Wars

When Sam had a feeding tube removed from his stomach three years ago stomach acid began leaking onto his skin.

“He was not allowed to eat for days,” Kymm said. “He was still smiling.”

Sam’s family appreciate every day they have with him.

“When he was born he was given a 5% chance of living until the age of five,” Kymm said.

The family must decide whether to send Sam for more surgery at Newcastle’s Freeman Hospital.

“Newcastle have offered to give him a replacement heart valve and a pacemaker,” Kymm said.

“But it is really risky. They would have to assess him for a heart transplant before they went ahead.”

That is because if anything goes wrong he may need a transplant straightaway.

That will be necessary in future anyway. But doctors want to hold surgery off because there are so few suitable child donors.

Sam's family are considering whether to send him for further surgery, but they know there are risks involved

“It’s inevitable,” Kymm said.

“The only reason they have offered this is to put it off for longer and give him a better life.

“The bigger you are the better your chance of getting a transplant.”

The family are always aware of how unwell Sam is.

“You learn to live day by day and put it to the back of your mind how poorly he is,” Kymm said.

“I do not know how he does that.”

Kymm is pals on Facebook with other mums of children with heart conditions.

“It’s nice to be able to speak to other people,” she said.

As he has grown older Sam, who lives in Newtown, Powys, has become more aware of his illness.

Sam, with mum Kymm, right, and sister Dannielle, heard doctors talking about his illness

“When we went to Newcastle he started to pick up things,” Kymm said.

He overheard doctors talking.

He said to his mum: “The doctor was talking about someone dying. Was he talking about me?”

Kymm said: “I told him ‘He was talking about someone dying but not you. Because you’re not going anywhere.’

“What do you say to a 10-year-old asking you that?”

Now the family are trying to raise £5,000 to take him to Disneyland Paris.

“He went to Disneyland when he was three,” Kymm said.

“We may not have him for much longer. At 10 he does not remember going [when he was three].

“He was talking to his sister Dannielle and saying how much he would love to go and go on the Star Wars ride.

“That was when Dannielle started fundraising.”

Five of Kymm’s children are dependent and three are not.

“I’m trying to send the dependents with him because I want it to be a good holiday for him,” sibling Dannielle, a mum of three, said.

“We do not know if he is going to make this surgery.

“The non-dependents are paying for ourselves but I cannot afford to pay for everyone.”

The 24-year-old knows they are fighting against time.

“This could be his last holiday,” Dannielle said.

“It breaks our hearts but it is reality to us. We have always had to say he might not be around for long.

“We always knew he needed a transplant and that these are not easy things to come by.”

Sam’s situation leaves her upset, she admitted.

“It’s heartbreaking because it is not fair,” Dannielle said.

“He has been through so much and he does not it get him down.

“He does not deserve any of it.”

To help send Sam to Disneyland Paris visit: www.gofundme.com/ympnpg