Isaiah’s Eyes

Hi there, my name is Daniella and I am utilising this platform to raise money for my son Isaiah’s eye surgery. We are a family of 5 that are asking for help with the medical costs associated with the surgery.

Unfortunately, Isaiahs last few months have been overwhelmingly unfortunate and not something any parent would want to go through.

We noticed our son had a white mark on his eye. We asked him to rub it & noticed it didn't move, when we looked closer we noticed it definitely did not look right. We instantly booked our son in to see our family Optometrist.

On the 14th October, 2022 Isaiah attended the appointment with where they discovered that he had Keratoconus. This all became a huge shock, we have always taken our children for there regular checks due to having Glaucoma in the family. Unfortunately this has happened within 2yrs of the previous appointment. Looking back at photos we can now see this has happened in that short period of time.

Isaiah was booked in with an eye specialist in Auburn on the 4th November 2022, they dilated his eyes & conducted tests to examine his eyes. Isaiah has lost his vision in his right eye due to it having stretched out scaring & the left eye has already started with Keratoconus, he needs to have an operation. The specialist said he will find a surgeon that can operate on him and to see him again in February, 2023.

We weren't comfortable waiting that long to 'just find out who can operate' on my son. I read up on this condition & my son obviously has a very aggressive case of it. I spoke with my family GP who didn't think it would be good to wait that long.

I wanted to see a surgeon that specialises in Keratoconus & booked our son in on the 30th November, 2022 at Parramatta. We attended that appointment, Isaiah again had his eyes dilated & tested to examine his eye. The surgeon noticed the Optometrist history report on Isaiah & noticed that we had seen a Specialist already. I apologised to him how that may look. I said, but I'm really concerned & stressed over my sons condition as I know that he has an aggressive case of Keratoconus. The surgeon response was that I was correct in trying to fast track the process as it is progressing rapidly. He advised that our son unfortunately needs an eye transplant in the right eye, the scaring in the eye is very bad. On the left eye it has already started with Keratoconus & he needs an operation called a 'Crosslink procedure'. Isaiah needs this surgery as soon as possible. He advised that he isn't authorised to proceed this operation on a child our sons age, but he does know of a surgeon that can & his located in Kindsford & I'm going to book this in for you right now. He called & pushed to have an appointment booked in and the date given was the 9th December, 2022. He said I personally know this surgeon & due to your sons urgency, I'm personally going to follow up a phone call with him so he is well aware of Isaiahs situation. He asked me questions, Do you have anyone in your family that has this condition? I answered, No. No one on my side or my husbands side. He asked did you notice him rub his eyes alot I answered, no nothing really different but my son has just been diagnosed with Autism & he does all sensory things. The surgeon was really supportive, informative & amazing.

Isaiah attended the appointment on the 9th December, 2022 at Kingsford. Isaiah had to do some eye test & examinations. The surgeon asked the same question, do I have anyone in the family with this condition, I answered no one in my side or my husbands. He asked if Isaiah has asthma? I said no but when he was younger they suspected he might end up with it, but since he had his tonsils & adenoids removed he has had no issues. He said great can cross that off. He asked if Isaiah has bone joint issues? I said no. He asked if I had notice Isaiah rub his eyes more than normal? I answered, no, nothing really different but my son has just been diagnosed with Autism & he does all sensory things. The surgeon wanted to know when it was noticed and how. I explained the timeline and what I've been through to get to this point. He confirmed the specialist did call him & informed him about Isaiah's condition. The surgeon said Isaiah's right eye needs an eye transplant (the glass part of the eye is replaced), his left eye needs the crosslink operation as soon as possible so it does not progress rapidly like the other has and it will cost about $6,000. With the crosslink surgery there is a 90% chance it can go well, but advised us to be prepared that there is a 10% chance it can go completely the opposite way. However if we don't do anything Isaiah will lose his eyesight regardless. When Isaiah has the crosslink surgery he will be in excruciating pain for atleast 2 days & it wont matter what pain relief you give him he will require our full support to get through it. If the surgery goes well, it will take up to 4 weeks before he regains his vision back. In regards to the eye transplant the cost hasn't been disclosed to us as yet, however we know it will be in the ballpark of tens of thousands of dollars.

It's so hard to look at my son with the thought of him losing his eyesight at the age of 11 years old. Watching him put up the Christmas tree with his siblings made me realise this maybe his very last year to see any of this and its too much to bare.

We would be forever greatful for your help to raise some money for our sons surgery and for him to have a possible chance on having a future in which he will continue to see the world through his adventurous eyes!