A young girl was given only 12 months to live after she was diagnosed with a diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma, a rare form of brain cancer.
Lily McKelvey, 6, started vomiting in the morning after Christmas last year, but doctors initially said that her symptoms were caused by a bad case of gastroenteritis.
Her heartbroken parents Elizabeth and Jack are now fundraising to send their daughter to New York for a pioneering treatment not available in the UK.
Lily was a healthy baby when she was born in 2014. The family were over the moon when they found out that she was about to become a big sister to a baby brother.
But shortly after Christmas last year, Lily started throwing up but doctors initially said it was a bad case of gastroenteritis.
Elizabeth and Jack then decided to consult a private doctor who told them to take their daughter to Colchester hospital, where various tests revealed a mass in Lily’s brain.
The parents were told that DIPG – a tumor that grows in the brain stem – is incurable. Without radiotherapy, their 6-year-old daughter wouldn’t live beyond six months.
After doing extensive research, Elizabeth and Jack found a specialist treatment in New York that could help prolong Lily’s life.
They are now trying to raise funds for Lily’s treatment in New York after their doctor confirmed that she may be able to go there for treatment after radiotherapy.
Lily’s aunt, Lucy, said the coronavirus pandemic has meant the young girl may not be able to spend her final year with family and friends.
“The treatment in America can prolong her life so she will get to see her brother and spend time with her friends after this year, hopefully we can get out of the pandemic,” she told Stoke-on-Trent Live.
“She can’t go and play with her friends, she has been robbed of her childhood,” Lily added.
For those who would like to donate to Lily, visit her GoFundMe page.
What are your thoughts on this? Let us know in the comments section and SHARE this story with your friends and family!
Replaced!