The drugs don’t work! MS treatment
29th March 2017
Shea McNaughton’s father, John, is currently fundraising for MS treatment in Mexico, he has £65,000 to raise in a very short space of time. John and his family’s story is below.
If you could give something, no matter how small, it would be greatly appreciated. There has been a Just Giving Crowd Funding page set up for John where you can donate, just follow the link https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/john-mcnaughton?utm_id=33&utm_term=jNg6WRdqQ
The drugs don’t work!
I’ve been able to carry my daughter Shannon once since she was born!
This is the stark reality of living with Multiple Sclerosis.
John known locally as Noddy is a 43 year old married man with 5 children. His wife Patricia has her hands full caring for them all including her husband John. She doesn’t complain. She goes about her work in a quiet and calm manner despite the extreme pressures she is facing – things have changed dramatically since they first met at the marquee in Cushendall in 1999!
John has been farming beef cattle and sheep since he left school at 16. He built up a small holding which had 200 sheep and 25 cattle. Shea the eldest at 13 has been working the farm for the last few years. His daddy’s crippling illness has left him unable to do the work himself. Shea couldn’t cope with the heavy and dangerous work so the cattle are now all gone. Shea along with his younger sister Clodagh 11 and two younger brothers Eoin 8 and Ruari 6, go through the daily farm routine with the sheep. It’s a tough life before and after school! John oversees from a distance.
John once hurled for his local Glenariffe Ossians. When he retired from playing he refereed for 5 years. He noticed things changing. He couldn’t focus on the play. His stride started to shorten. He thought he was just getting older and unfit. His friends thought he had a drink problem but never said!
John’s sister Mary, was alarmed that John now had the same gait as a person she knew who had MS. An appointment was made at the Doctors and within a short time John was in Magherafelt Neurology Department. After tests a few weeks later John was diagnosed with Secondary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis.
John at first was pleased as he thought he had Motor Neuron Disease or cancer of the spine. Now he realises the full impact of the diagnosis. It has been a gradual decline. There are no good days! He just gets steadily worse. MS is basically where the insulating covers of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord are damaged. This damage disrupts the ability of parts of the nervous system to communicate. John is now wheelchair bound. John has had all medication removed – none of them work now!
There is only one option available to John and time is running out before he will not be allowed to go for the surgery. The group Clinique Ruiz are based in Mexico. They perform stem cell surgery which involves initial chemo therapy followed by the introduction of stem cells into the body with the hope of stopping the progress of MS. It may not work but he has no other options left.
The timescale is tight – Clinique Ruiz will only accept patients who have not went beyond theHematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation (HSCT) score of 7. John is currently between 6.5 and 7. John has a maximum of 6 months before he exceeds the limit that determines this surgery cannot be performed. Time is running out.
We have formed a group who will be undertaking control of the fundraising to gather the £65,000 required to have the surgery completed. This is a lot of money and will require the support and kindness of a lot of people. Various fundraising activities will be happening very soon due to the timescales involved. Please support them to help John and his family.
Clodagh, Shannon sitting on John’s knee, Shea (The famer), Eoin and Ruari.
Shea McNaughton’s father, John, is currently fundraising for MS treatment in Mexico, he has £65,000 to raise in a very short space of time. John and his family’s story is below.
If you could give something, no matter how small, it would be greatly appreciated. There has been a Just Giving Crowd Funding page set up for John where you can donate, just follow the link https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/john-mcnaughton?utm_id=33&utm_term=jNg6WRdqQ
