Family and friends of a Moray three-year-old who is battling a high-risk cancer are launching a £100,000 appeal that would allow her to receive treatment in the United States.
Eileidh Paterson’s family and friends have until June to raise the funding that would allow the brave youngster to receive trial drugs that will not be available in the UK until 2016.
Eileidh’s mother Gail has been keeping a growing army of concerned friends informed via social media as her daughter has been undergoing intensive surgery and treatments over the last year for Neuroblastoma, an aggressive form of cancer that that causes tumours to spread throughout the body.
However, by the end of May a course of antibody treatment Eileidh has been receiving will come to an end – and even if scans at that point show no evidence of the disease there will be no further treatment available in this country to prevent a relapse.
Ms Paterson said: “If Eileidh does get the all clear then that will of course be great news, but we need to do everything possible to make sure it does not come back.
“As a family we will never be able to sit back and relax – the danger will always be there, it could be weeks, months or years. If we do not get her treatment in the USA and the cancer comes back then I will feel that I have not done everything I can for her.”
Throughout the last 11 months Eileidh has undergone 31 transfusions, 32 anaesthetics and six bone marrow aspirates. She has also endured 11 radiotherapy treatments, 42 bouts of chemotherapy (17 of which have been high dose) and has spent 20 days in isolation.
“She is doing amazingly well in general despite everything – there are occasional hiccups but she has handled treatment better than we ever thought.”
People can donate to Eileidh’s appeal through her Just Giving site – www.justgiving.com/EileidhsJourney
Having monitored Eileidh’s Journey Facebook Page insideMoray has donated £250 to her appeal – the remaining funds from our 2015 Christmas Calendar project. On behalf of all our readers we pass our good wishes to this amazing young lady, her family and her friends.