Young Emily ‘inspires us every day with her bravery’
By Maurice Garvey
THE Clondalkin parents of young Emily Duffy who is battling a rare form of cancer – say their daughter “inspires us every day with her bravery, strength and love for everyone around her.”
Robert Duffy and Gillian Lee, originally from St John’s, and now living in Celbridge, have spent much of the last nine months trying to get the best care for their daughter.
In November 2016, Emily was diagnosed with Stage 4 Neuroblastoma, a potentially life-threatening form of cancer, which affects one in every 100,000 children in Ireland.
“Her wish on her fourth birthday was for all the sick children to be better – this shows how much of a special little girl she is,” said Robert.
In the aftermath of the diagnosis, family, friends and members of the community formed a GoFundMe page ‘A Princess Called Emily’ to try and raise €300,000 so that Emily can travel to the United States for DMFO clinical trials to prevent relapse.
Gillian said: “Before the diagnosis she was a happy healthy three-year-old girl. Unfortunately, the relapse rate for this type of cancer is 70 per cent, so when Emily does recover it is likely the cancer may return.
“The DFMO trial is an experimental trial that prevents relapse in children. If a child that previously had neuroblastoma does relapse, the survival rates are extremely low.
“In the past nine months, Emily has been through rounds of chemotherapy, surgery, high-dose chemotherapy, stem cell transplant and radiotherapy. Emily also needs blood transfusions and platelets regularly. We would like to urge anyone that can give blood to do so, as all children suffering with cancer need blood regularly.”
Emily has just finished radiotherapy and has some time to rest until her next stage of treatment.
Robert and Gillian told The Echo they have been blown away by the kindness of people, and Gemma and Philip Carr from the Ciarán Carr Foundation, for choosing to support Emily’s fund.
This year the annual Ciaran Carr 5k family run will be held in aid of Emily.
Gemma Carr from the Ciarán Carr Foundation: “Emily’s story has touched so many hearts since the fundraising effort began in 2016. Ciarán’s fun run has brought members of the community together in recent years in aid of some great causes. This year we want to turn Corkagh Park pink on October 1 for Princess Emily.”
The main event will take place on Sunday, October 1, at 12 noon in Corkagh Park. All funds raised will go towards Emily’s America fund. Adult entry is €10 with Under 16s entering for free.
To take part visit www.iregister.ie, search events list for Ciarán Carr Foundation 5K or log on to Facebook or Twitter and follow the link.
Anyone who would like to make a donation to Emily’s fund online can visit www.gofundme.com/a-princess-called-emily.
