My sister's Cancer Treatment fund
Donation protected
Hi my name is Arlene and I have set up this page to try and help finance my sister Leigh's Cancer Treatment in Florida.
In September 2003 my younger sister Leigh lost her 9 year old daughter Gemma who died instantly along with her friend whilst crossing a road near her home in Springfield Fife. 5 months later in the February of 2004 we then unexpectedly lost our Dad.
Having been through hell and back we pulled together as a family to support one another and try to come to terms with our loss.
You never really get over the loss of a loved one but when its a child its seems like your heart has been ripped out. You do however learn to cope.
In 2006 I myself suffered a massive Heart Attack which brought our family to it's knees once again. Finding the strength to move on was very difficult however we did and have become stronger for it.
As if this wasn't enough, again my family has been dealt another setback.
In 2012 my sister Leigh was told she had a slow growing tumour at the base of her skull, this was monitored for nearly 3 years before the decision was taken by her consultant in October last year to attempt to remove the growth.
In January this year due to the rare positioning of her tumour Leigh spent nearly 9 hours in theatre whilst they tried to remove it, and a further two weeks recovering at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary.
On the 18th February 2016 it was confirmed that Leigh had a rare form of cancer called Chordoma, it was also confirmed that the surgery had only managed to remove 80% of it.
Leigh's only hope of a cure is Proton Beam Therapy, unfortunately this is not available in this country and she must travel to Jacksonville in Florida for daily treatment that is expected to last for approximately 9 weeks. Whilst the treatment itself is funded by the NHS in Scotland, it does not cover any living expenses whilst she is there.
I myself am having to take unpaid leave from my employment as I will be travelling with Leigh to Jacksonville as it stipulates that she must be accompanied by someone, because they do not know how she may react to the treatment.
Leigh is a single parent with 3 beautiful daughters and an adored Grandma to her wee 3 boys. The stress of all of this is taking its toll not only on her but them as well.
My reason for setting up this page is to ask for YOUR HELP PLEASE.
We are not a rich family and have exhausted all our savings, but unfortunately its not enough. Not only do we have the added expense of being away from home for such a long period of time, Leigh still has to finance her children's living expenses here.
With help from friends and neighbours we have organised some local fundraising events in the hope of achieving our target, but we also hope to raise awareness of this particular type of cancer and hopefully enough will be raised to allow us to donate anything over our target to The Chordoma Foundation UK, where it can be used to help others in the same situation as us.
Any help will be greatly received and very much appreciated.
In September 2003 my younger sister Leigh lost her 9 year old daughter Gemma who died instantly along with her friend whilst crossing a road near her home in Springfield Fife. 5 months later in the February of 2004 we then unexpectedly lost our Dad.
Having been through hell and back we pulled together as a family to support one another and try to come to terms with our loss.
You never really get over the loss of a loved one but when its a child its seems like your heart has been ripped out. You do however learn to cope.
In 2006 I myself suffered a massive Heart Attack which brought our family to it's knees once again. Finding the strength to move on was very difficult however we did and have become stronger for it.
As if this wasn't enough, again my family has been dealt another setback.
In 2012 my sister Leigh was told she had a slow growing tumour at the base of her skull, this was monitored for nearly 3 years before the decision was taken by her consultant in October last year to attempt to remove the growth.
In January this year due to the rare positioning of her tumour Leigh spent nearly 9 hours in theatre whilst they tried to remove it, and a further two weeks recovering at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary.
On the 18th February 2016 it was confirmed that Leigh had a rare form of cancer called Chordoma, it was also confirmed that the surgery had only managed to remove 80% of it.
Leigh's only hope of a cure is Proton Beam Therapy, unfortunately this is not available in this country and she must travel to Jacksonville in Florida for daily treatment that is expected to last for approximately 9 weeks. Whilst the treatment itself is funded by the NHS in Scotland, it does not cover any living expenses whilst she is there.
I myself am having to take unpaid leave from my employment as I will be travelling with Leigh to Jacksonville as it stipulates that she must be accompanied by someone, because they do not know how she may react to the treatment.
Leigh is a single parent with 3 beautiful daughters and an adored Grandma to her wee 3 boys. The stress of all of this is taking its toll not only on her but them as well.
My reason for setting up this page is to ask for YOUR HELP PLEASE.
We are not a rich family and have exhausted all our savings, but unfortunately its not enough. Not only do we have the added expense of being away from home for such a long period of time, Leigh still has to finance her children's living expenses here.
With help from friends and neighbours we have organised some local fundraising events in the hope of achieving our target, but we also hope to raise awareness of this particular type of cancer and hopefully enough will be raised to allow us to donate anything over our target to The Chordoma Foundation UK, where it can be used to help others in the same situation as us.
Any help will be greatly received and very much appreciated.
Organizer
Arlene Collins
Organizer