by Rebecca Hannant
A Bilton couple have reached their £100,000 fundraising goal to help their two-year-old son receive specialist treatment in the US for life-threatening cancer.
In 2023, Louie Turner was diagnosed with a rare type of cancer called a high-risk neuroblastoma. At diagnosis the condition has a 50 per cent long-term survival rate.
Louie later went through eight rounds of chemotherapy, 10-hour surgery, high-dose chemotherapy as well as radiotherapy.
At first, the 17cm-long tumour responded very well to treatment and after initial chemotherapy and surgery in October, it had reduced to 0.5cm. However, the tumour has not responded to treatment since, and remains active.
Louie is undergoing immunotherapy. If the tumour is not dead on completing the programme, his parents say that there will only be a 50 per cent chance of long-term survival.
In a bid to give Louie the best chance of survival, his parents launched a £100,000 appeal to get him to America where he can receive a treatment called Difluoromethylornithine (DFMO) which has recently been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Since launching their appeal, the couple have managed to reach their £100,000 target with the support of several people among the Holderness community who have held a series of fundraising events, and about 2,000 people have supported the online fundraiser with donations still coming in.
The money raised will now be put towards Louie’s treatment in the US, clinical consultations and the cost of scans, as well as flights and accommodation and any other costs.
Louie’s mother, Daisy Turner, said: “We can’t thank everyone enough for their support. There have been so many people donating, sharing, organising, and participating in events and we are completely overwhelmed. There are still several events planned by Life for a Kid, Reckitt, Wolds, the Nags Head and Hed’On Inn. But we just can’t really express how grateful we are to everyone.”
To donate, visit justgiving.com/crowdfunding/Cure4Louie.
