THE family of a little girl suffering from a rare form of cancer have been overwhelmed by the response to their pleas for help with fundraising for specialised treatment abroad.
Robyn Smyth, from Whitehall, suffers from neuroblastoma, a form of cancer that can attack the nervous system, and this week her family face making a difficult decision regarding her treatment.
Robyn has just finished her second round of chemotherapy and is scheduled for a scan on Wednesday (September 4), the results of which will help the family decide whether she undergoes further treatment in Ireland or goes to the US where there are more, highly specialised options available.
The family estimate that just starting treatment abroad will cost a minimum of
?¬350,000. And while they are well short of that target they’ve been given the strength to carry on thanks to incredible fundraising efforts by locals touched by Robyn’s heartbreaking story.
Robyn’s parents, Bernadette Dornan and Leighton Smyth, have been amazed by the generosity they’ve experienced.
“There’s an awful lot happening and it’s absolutely brilliant,
? said Bernadette.
The family are anxiously waiting for the results of the scan, which will reveal how successful the chemotherapy treatment that Robyn has endured since relapsing earlier this year has been.
“This is a really, really important scan and we’ll have to decide what we’re doing when we get the results,
? Bernadette explained.
“If the scan shows the treatment has been doing something, maybe we have another few weeks to think about what to do. But if the treatment is not doing anything, or if she’s progressed while on it, we’ll probably have to go abroad immediately.
“I won’t hang around if the cancer has progressed. Definitely not.
?
The cancer has spread to Robyn’s jaw, lung, liver and pelvis and the family say her options in Ireland are limited.
Over the past few weeks hundreds of Northsiders have attended dozens of fundraisers that have helped push the fund from just over
?¬50,000 at the end of June to over
?¬180,000, but they need to almost double that figure to start treatment in the US.
Bernadette remains hopeful that somehow they’ll reach the target.
?I think if we do have to go, we’ll have the money. We have to have it. People have been so good.
?
Robyn’s grandfather Colm says the family is delighted with the response to the fundraising.
“The kids have been really great raising money,
? he said.
“Everybody’s been fantastic. There was one pensioner who called me a few weeks ago and he said he had a bag of coins he wanted to donate. It was money he’d put aside from change from his shopping or whatever.
“He told me there was about
?¬80, but when we counted it there was
?¬320. I went back to him and told him how much there was and asked if he wanted any of it back because there was so much, but he wanted it all to go to Robyn.
?
Robyn celebrated her ninth birthday just over a week ago and despite having to rush to hospital with a nose bleed after the party, she’s been in relatively good form in the run up to this week’s crucial scan.
The pressure on the family is immense, but Bernadette says all the focus is always on doing whatever is best for their little girl.
“I’m so busy doing what I can to save Robyn that I’m not thinking about how I feel,
? she told Northside People.
“I’ve had the odd tear, but crying won’t save her life. I just need to get on and do whatever I can for Robyn.
“The hardest decision is always what to do next. Nobody knows what the right thing to do is, but I have to choose something.
“I’ll do anything and go anywhere for Robyn.
?
Robyn isn’t fully aware of all the fundraising efforts and like any nine-year-old girl would be embarrassed by the attention.
“She’d be mortified to know her face was on posters and lollipops,
? said Bernadette.
“She’d go mental. I try to tell her, but she doesn’t want to know. She just wants to forget about being sick.
?
?¢ Donations to The Robyn’s Life Trust can be made to Allied Irish Bank. Ref: Robyn’s Life, Account number 21417099, Sort code: 93-23-53. Donations can also be made online at Robynslife.com or call Robyn’s aunt, Cathy Dornan, on 087-2055672.