Update issued on 'strong, brave' Kildare two-year-old with inoperable tumours
An update on a two-year-old girl from Kildare battling a rare cancer has been issued
An update has been issued on two-year-old Darcy O’Donnell from Kildare, with two of her tumours now deemed inoperable.
Darcy was diagnosed with a rare and “aggressive” childhood cancer called Stage 4 Metastatic Neuroblastoma in April.
She is being treated at Children’s Health Ireland in Crumlin, with the treatment expected to last a year and a half.
A GoFundMe was set up to help support the family, originally from South Africa, during this difficult time.
It has a goal of €30,000, and at the time of writing €28,560 has been raised so far.
An update was issued on July 21, stating that Darcy has completed her 80-day chemotherapy plan, but that her journey is “far from over.”
“The tumours in both her eye and brain are inoperable, and her medical team are now assessing what the next steps in her treatment will be,” the GoFundMe page, set up by friends of Darcy’s parents, states.
The past week has been difficult for Darcy, as she underwent a bilateral bone marrow extraction, which caused severe pain, significant nausea, and vomiting.
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She also had a feeding tube fitted, a 2.5-hour bone scan, and heart checks including ECG and ECHO examinations.
Darcy is now facing further brain monitoring, blood tests, and another MRI under anaesthetic.
“We have been visiting Darcy throughout all of this and, despite everything she is going through, she still continues to greet us with the biggest smile on her face. It is impossible to put into words how strong and brave this little girl is,” the page says.
It has also been “incredibly difficult” on Darcy’s parents, Megan and Keiron, who are trying to learn so many new things while also caring for her in ways they “never imagined.”
Darcy has to get injections every night, while doctors assess how close she is to a stem cell extraction.
“There is still so much uncertainty, but we will continue to take things one day at a time and keep everyone updated on Darcy's journey,” the GoFundMe says.
To help support the family, you can donate to the GoFundMe here.