Striving for Summer fundraiser for Mayo girl battling cancer
MAYO girl Summer O’Malley-Kearney has faced more battles in her eight short years than most would in their lifetime.
At eight months old, she was diagnosed with an extremely rare cancer called Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis (LCH). She had many lengthy stays on St. John's Ward in Crumlin Hospital - in and out of ICU - but, thankfully, a new trial drug from the US in 2016 saw her recover and return to good health for four years.
Having started school in 2018, November 2019 saw Summer's health start to decline and in March 2020 she was diagnosed with a completely new cancer - Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia (ALL). Summer faced into another battle for her life, which coincided with the start of a global pandemic.
Summer is one of 10 children on medical records to experience being diagnosed with LCH and then leukaemia. She has also experienced rare side effects from some of the chemo drugs and this has had a huge impact on her neurological health, affecting her speech, balance and behaviour.
She will require extensive rehabilitation to support her recovery for many years to come. These include play therapy, physio, speech and language, and occupational therapy, amongst others.
Summer's treatment for leukaemia is due to finish in September 2022.
Starting this week (on May 8), in support of Summer and her road to recovery, a small group of close friends and family will walk, run or cycle the remaining distance of Summer's journeys between Castlebar and Crumlin Hospital to receive treatment.
The group plan to cover 8,213km in 44 days, ending their challenge by walking or running a half-marathon on ‘Summer's Solstice’, June 21.
A GoFundMe page - Striving for Summer - has been set up and they hope they can achieve their goal of covering 8,213 km in 44 days, raising awareness of childhood cancer and generating funds for Summer's rehabilitation and her road to recovery.
Following on from this, Summer’s family would like to support and give back to the amazing charities that have helped them over the last eight years, which include Aoibheann's Pink Tie, Bumbleance and the National Children's Cancer Research Centre, Crumlin.
The response to the fundraiser has been overwhelming. Just five days after the page was launched, it has surpassed its €15,000 target, with €38,330 raised to date.
Summer's family and friends speak on the page about what a special little girl she is: 'For anyone that has ever had the pleasure of meeting Summer they would all say the same thing - she is the most caring, loving, and funny little girl who brightens up every room she walks into. She is the little comedian in her family and is always up for a bit of craic.
'Summer has faced more battles in her eight short years than most others would in their lifetime. Even with everything she goes through and all the obstacles that have come her way, she never complains.
'Watching Summer go through chemotherapy all over again is just heart-breaking for everyone that knows her but especially her parents, Lorraine and Nicky, who could not be prouder of their true-life superhero.'
All details can be found on the Go Fund Me, Instagram and Facebook pages, Striving for Summer, and updates will be provided on all platforms during the challenge.
You can support the Striving for Summer appeal here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/striving-for-summer?utm_campaign=p_cp_url&utm_medium=os&utm_source=customer