Parents hope that Katie will walk after US operation

A DUBLIN couple has issued a heartfelt appeal for help in sending their six-year-old daughter to the US where she can learn how to walk.

Little Katie Byrne has cerebral palsy and cannot walk independently.

However, she has been accepted for an operation called Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy (SDR) that a hospital in America specialises in.

The medics in St Louis Children’s Hospital in Missouri have written to Katie’s parents to say they believe she is an ideal candidate for the specific treatment.

“We expect that Katie will be able to walk independently in all environments,

? one of the head doctors at the hospital wrote.

“We feel that she would be an excellent candidate for rhizotomy surgery and we strongly recommend that she have this surgery.

?

The catch is the cost. At over e60,000 the price to send Katie for treatment is beyond her parents’ ability and they are appealing for help in raising the money from their fellow Dubliners.

Mum Antoinette McLough­lin, from Coolock, and dad Robert Byrne, from Stepaside, live in Cork but they need help from Dubliners to send Katie on her way.

“The operation costs in the region of e60,000 and we need to fundraise to get her there,

? Antoinette said.

“We have a lot of friends and family in Dublin who are helping us out but we will need help with fundraising.

“We understand this is a huge amount of money but to see Katie walk independently would be fantastic for her. It will give her so much more freedom and she will be less restricted to do normal things that you and I take for granted every day like brushing her teeth, putting her shoes on and going out into the garden to run around.

?

“Raising e60,000 won’t be an easy task but a lot of the locals in Cobh and our own family and friends in Dublin, where we are both from, are already organising different fundraisers for her which gives us even more hope that she will get to St Louis for this operation.

?

She added:

“We are hoping to get Katie to St Louis in the summer so she doesn’t have to miss out on any school time as her education is important to us.

?

Katie also requires orthopaedic surgery on both calf muscles and hamstrings to achieve the best possible outcome but it is hoped she will get the operation in St Louis Children’s Hospital while she is there for her treatment.

“Since getting word that Katie has been accepted for SDR we have been overwhelmed by the amount of people who want to help us out with getting Katie to the US,

? Antoinette added.

“We are still in shock with her getting accepted ourselves and to have so many people send us good wishes has truly blown us away.

“Our biggest thing recently was meeting up with another child who has already had SDR. Dylan and his family paid us a visit and to see him walking with no aides at all was amazing.

“We were in total amazement that SDR worked so well and we just hope Katie improves as much as Dylan has.

?

For more information on Katie go to her Facebook page at www.facebook.com/katies.dreamtowalk

Her website is www.katiesdreamtowalk.com.

The bank account details for donations are: Bank of Ireland – sort code 90-26-37 account number 23665988.