This is Lucy.

Lucy is the daughter of one of my close friends cousin's Nicola. Please read the story from the family below, I want to help in anyway that I can and I will be doing various sporting events along with my family and friends to raise as much money as we can to try to help:

Five-and-a-half years ago, on 24th January 2012, my sister Nicola (Lucy's mum) tragically died from sudden cardiac arrest at the age of 33, due to undiagnosed Dilated Cardiomyopathy (a heart condition).

Lucy was only four years old at the time and her sister, Amy, was almost two.

Nicola was also pregnant with their little sister, Ruby, who was born by c-section at 24 weeks gestation, during Nicola's attempted resuscitation. Ruby lived for 14 hours but died in her daddy's arms on Tuesday 25th January 2012.

Lucy and Amy

On Monday 17th July 2017, our already broken hearts were shattered into a million pieces when Lucy was diagnosed with Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (DIPG), a terminal, inoperable and (so far) untreatable malignant brain tumour. We have since found out that the tumour is a Grade 4, meaning Lucy is expected to have only months to live.

Currently, treatment is limited to radiotherapy (of which there are several delivery methods) and chemotherapy on the NHS. There has been very little research into DIPG and therefore, comparatively little is known about this type of cancer. We know it only affects children and the cruel nature and location of the tumour means that DIPG children gradually lose control of their bodily functions.

Our family is doing everything possible, amid the whirlwind of disbelief we find ourselves in, to find alternative therapies and options that may work either outside or alongside the NHS. It's our only hope of helping Lucy and if we have hope, we can keep going.

Below is a list of areas we are currently researching:

- Intra-arterial chemotherapy treatment under Dr. Alberto Siller and Dr. Alberto Garcia in Monterrey, Mexico

- Convection-Enhanced Delivery (CED) - a way to overcome the blood brain barrier by implanting four very fine tubes, or catheters, surgically into the tumour to deliver chemotherapy drugs directly at an effective concentration - under Dr. Zacharoulis at The Harley Street Clinic, London, or Dr. Mark Souweidane at The Weill Cornell Brain and Spine Center, New York

- BET domain inhibitors - a possible therapy in DIPG under Dr. Rishi Lulla whom will be pushing into clinic a recent science discovery by Professor Ali Shilatifard, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine

- Clinical trials of the drug DFMO at Sydney Children’s Hospital, Randwick under Dr. David Ziegler - Children’s Cancer Institute, Australia

- Anti-tumoral effect mediated by non-psychotropic cannabinoid receptors and other cannabinoid receptors researched by Dr. Cristina Sánchez, PhD in Madrid, Spain

We would also like to find a nutritionist for Lucy to advise on a suitable diet - there is some research that diet-induced ketosis causes changes to brain homeostasis that have potential for the treatment of malignant gliomas. We have also read about a metabolic diet which may help.

In addition, we've been in contact with acupuncturist and author, Dan Keown, who has recommended treatment via the Du and Yang Qioa Mai channels.

The above treatments do come at a cost, for example, the treatment in Mexico is estimated to cost at least £300,000 and even initial consultations can cost hundreds of pounds, so we would like to try and raise some funds to help towards this.

Any excess funds raised will go towards research into DIPG.