Source : Perth Now news
A Perth family has launched a GoFundMe campaign in an attempt to reunite with their 15-year-old boy who is battling an aggressive brain tumour thousands of kilometres from home.
Eddie Park was diagnosed with stage four medulloblastoma, a fast-growing form of brain cancer, in August.
In the days after his diagnosis, Eddie underwent emergency surgery at Perth Children’s Hospital.
Doctors were unable to remove a small portion of the tumour because of its location, leaving the teenager facing an intensive treatment regime overseas.
His best treatment option was determined to be proton therapy which is only available at the UF Health Proton Therapy Institute in Florida.
Eddie, who has grown up in Butler, is now in the US where he is undertaking an eight-week course of treatment.
The Australian Government has approved funding to cover Eddie’s overseas medical treatment, including flights, accommodation, passports, visas and travel insurance for Eddie and one support person — his mum.
But the family says further health scares since arriving in Florida have escalated the situation prompting his father, Tyrone, and stepmother, Sandra, to try travel to Florida to be by his side.
The government funding, while covering Eddie and one support person, does not extend to Tyrone and Sandra.
“Eddie is a friendly soul… he thinks about others more than himself,” Mr Park told The West Australian.
“It breaks my heart that we aren’t there with him. We love him so much and can’t bear the thought of him suffering there without our support.
“We need to be there by his side.”
The GoFundMe has been established with the hope of raising $25,000 to send Tyrone and Sandra to Jacksonville to support Eddie and his mum throughout his radiotherapy.
“Tyrone hardly left Eddies bedside while he was in PCH and although the initial decision for Tyrone and Sandra to stay behind in Australia seemed the best decision at the time, it is now evident that they both need to be with Eddie,” the GoFundMe reads.
“This Go Fund Me is set up by his cousin, with the hope we can raise enough money to get Tyrone and Sandra to Florida, to be back at Eddies side, supporting him and cheering him on during the exhausting 8 week radiotherapy schedule.
“Funds raised will be used for emergency passports, airfares, insurance, transfers and costs involved while in the USA and also the costs that will keep mounting in Australia while they are away.”
