Support a young mother battling terminal cancer

Life can take unexpected turns, and sometimes those turns lead to unimaginable challenges.

Our family is facing one such challenge as we confront the devastating news this month of our daughter Rachael's terminal brain tumour diagnosis.

Rachael, a 22-year-old mother to her one-year-old daughter Raeya from Belfast began experiencing severe headaches and eye discomfort eight months ago. Despite initial diagnosis of 'dry eyes,' her symptoms persisted and worsened, prompting a visit to urgent care in the Royal Victoria hospital.

After an awful few days spent on a trolley bed in a hospital corridor, an MRI revealed a mass in her brain, now identified as a diffuse midline glioma brain tumour with the rare and aggressive H3K27 mutation, also spreading down her spine.

Surgery is not an option due to the size and position of the tumour, the diagnosis is terminal, giving Rachael potentially only months to live.

In the face of this harrowing reality, our priorities are clear: seeking treatment options and giving Rachael as much time as possible with us all.

That's where this GoFundMe campaign becomes crucial. We've identified a potentially life-extending treatment in Germany, under the name of ONC201 but it comes at a significant cost. Should Rachael qualify, we need funds to pay for travel costs, accommodation and the drugs themselves.

We refuse to let financial worries hinder Rachael's fight for her life or deprive her and her daughter of precious time together. Our goal is to ensure their comfort should the worst come to pass. No one should go from celebrating their child's first birthday to facing a terminal illness so swiftly.

While we can't erase Rachael's pain, we can ease the financial burden and share and support her journey. Your generosity, no matter how small, can make a world of difference. Thank you for your kindness, and please keep our family in your thoughts during this challenging time.

Any remaining money left over from medical treatment will go into a bank account for Rachael's daughter Raeya Burns to support her in life for if the time comes when she loses her mother.