Support for Harrison and his fight to beat Leukaemia

My name is Olivia Munro, Auntie to young Harrison Edwards. On behalf of our Edwards family, l have created this fundraiser to support my brother & sister in law, Luke & Chelsea Edwards and their beautiful son Harrison, who on Wednesday 3 April was diagnosed with Leukaemia.

Harrison's parents, Luke & Chelsea have remained incredibly strong through every process and always remained by his side. Though with his new diagnosis, it will take them away from their jobs, required to re-locate their home to be closer to the hospital and with this, unfortunately all the bills don't stop coming in, which leads us to this gofundme.

Please read Harrisons story, in his parents words..

"At 5 weeks old, our sweet baby boy named Harrison was diagnosed with a rare liver disease called Biliary Atresia. The condition is seen in newborns where the bile ducts of the liver are blocked, destroyed or absent, like a kinked or busted pipe. The bile accumulates inside the liver, causing damage (cirrhosis). It is not known why this occurs, but for Harrison, was not genetic or related to anything he was exposed to.

At 7 weeks old Harrison underwent surgery called the Kasai Procedure, which aims to establish bile flow (fix the plumbing). The Kasai went for roughly 6hrs and it was deemed successful, at the time. Unfortunately, Harrison got recurrent cholangitis, a serious liver infection, spending months in hospital on antibiotics. Each time the cholangitis flared up, the damage to his liver became worse, eventually irreversible and by the time he was 6 months old, he was showing signs of liver failure and was immediately placed on the the transplant list.

Harrison was 7 months old when a generous donor provided a segment of their liver for transplant, saving Harrison’s life. The gratitude towards our angel and their family is immeasurable. If you talk to Harrison about his liver donor, he will say “donor heart” - and this means the donor lives on in our hearts.

Harrison underwent transplant surgery, which was a very complicated surgery on such a little body, and took roughy 12hrs. By 8 months old Harrison had now been in hospital much of his life with a few weekends here and there at home. He recovered beautifully from the surgery, and we experienced more typical family life for the first time. Harrison relies on life long, carefully monitored immunosuppression to protect his liver from his immune system. This medication makes him susceptible to infections, and unfortunately can increase the risk of cancer. Which brings us to our present situation.

Now, at the age of only 2 and a half years old, Harrison has cruelly been diagnosed with Leukaemia, a blood cancer called Burkitt’s. This developed in a matter of weeks, and has absolutely blindsided us. Harrison’s Burkitt’s (usually a lymphoma) has infiltrated his bone marrow, making it a leukaemia, but it is also in his kidneys and lymph nodes, including the nodes around his neck.

Harrison is in a fight for his life, once again, and at such a young age this battle will be long and hard. He will require intensive chemotherapy for the next 6-9 months. Harrison will have nausea/vomiting, mucositis and lose his beautiful baby curls (which are currently styled in a mullet, because we didn’t want to cut them!). We know this will be hard on us all, and we are committed to supporting Harrison, and each other, the best we can. We plan to be there by his side every day, the good and not so good. Any help or support to achieve this will be greatly appreciated.

We will never understand why this has happened to him - It’s quite unbelievable and hard to process that with Harrison still so very young has had to endure so much, yet he is an amazing strong little boy with a lot of fight in him.

Your generosity will be used to pay for living expenses for the duration of Harrison’s treatment at Queensland Children’s Hospital and other expenses such as Groceries, Medicines and other pharmaceuticals, Nappies and baby formula, general Bills , Transport (e.g. petrol, car rego, insurance) and any needs for Harrison (e.g. incentives for when he needs to undergo a procedure, learning/enrichment supports).

Harrison’s in hospital treatment may to be up to 9 months or longer. Our family is not from Brisbane so have had to relocate at the recommendation of Harrison’s oncologist. Currently he is admitted to hospital and undergoing intensive treatment, including procedures under general anaesthetic at least weekly. He will need our continued devotion during this time. It is no longer an option for him to attend day care. We juggled work and having a very sick child in hospital over many admissions over the past two years and we know how difficult it is. We have both experienced deep burnout from the demands of this kind of life. When just one of us worked, and the other stayed in hospital, the burn out was the worst - dad would be up early, work a full day, battle rush hour traffic to spend just a short time with Harrison before rushing home to bed to do it again. Mum would be in the hospital, unable to sleep, night after night. This time, we cannot risk not being fully present. Our baby has endured unimaginable trauma (though not intended to harm) from the experiences he has had and he needs us to be there with him.

We hope not to require the full amount donated, and that this may be able to be paid forward.

Thank you for reading Harrison’s story."

Foundations such as the Leukaemia Foundation, Ronald McDonald House Charity, Donate Life & The Queensland Children's Hospital Foundation are all close to Luke & Chelsea, and in 2023, following Harrison’s successful liver transplant, he was invited to be a part of the Donatelife week, hosted by the Qld Health Minister.

Article: Donate Life Week - Health

These funds will be directly transferred to Harrison’s parents, Luke & Chelsea. Every and any donation will be so greatly appreciated, and we all thank you so much in advance for your shared support.