Last month was the worst of my life.

My daughter Elkie has recently been diagnosed with pineoblastoma which is an extremely rare form of cancer. She has so far had two operations in Newcastle royal infirmary, one being a major 7 hour surgery to remove the large tumour from her brain. This went as well as it could do and she has recovered from the operation well, but...

Pineoblastoma is serious and requires different types of treatment to achieve cure. As of now there is no visible evidence of spread of the cancer and the surgeons and doctors believe there is a high chance of cure but she will need to have 6 weeks of proton beam radiotherapy in the Christies hospital in Manchester. Followed by chemotherapy in Newcastle. For the radiotherapy Elkie will be under general anesthetic every weekday for 6 weeks and will suffer side effects such as hair loss and nausea. She’ll need her dad by her side so I will stay with her, she will recover from this for 6 weeks and then start chemotherapy in Newcastle.

This period is likely to be even harder and possibly have even more serious side effects which could be lifelong. however this is what we must do. I want to add that the hospitals have been amazing, the help and support on the NHS are humbling, we know we are so lucky to have this.

The ask:

I am reaching out for some help to get me through so that I can be there for Elkie during these treatments as she is my absolute everything. Usually I am an artist who paints giant murals, it takes me all over the UK but at this time work is not possible.

I’m quite scared for Elkie and also how I’m going to support us through this time, there is no way I will be able to work as normal, maybe not at all, I just don’t know how it’s going to go.

I’m asking for some help to cover living costs, food, travel to hospitals and all of the things I would have normally been able to pay for with money from working. I am hoping to also raise money for cancer research and and if there is anything in excess of what we need from any generosity people give it will be donated to this cause.

I want to thank everyone so much in advance for helping me. Your generosity means so much to us and will help us get through this.