Patrick's Leukemia journey/memorial

UPDATE - The below information is now out of date in light of my brother's passing on August 20th 2018. I am leaving the below information up as it chronicles the journey that Patrick fought, however we are no longer expecting donations in support of his journey. Any money remaining in this fund will be used by his family towards covering funeral and memorial expenses, and where possible if any remains to ease some of the costs incurred through Patrick's time in treatment. This page will be closed for donations soon, however pending some administrative tasks the page is currently still live.


For most people they start a new year with wishes of health and happiness for them and their loved ones - for my family this year, that wasn't to be.

Late on January 1st 2018 my brother was taken into a London accident and emergency with suspected mumps. He couldn't keep antibioitics down and his face had swollen up horrendously seemingly overnight. After a simple blood test he was rushed to a further two hospitals; the diagnosis? Multiple phenotype acute leukemia (MPAL)

At the time his biggest worry was his upcoming first year university exams but now as information and test results are trickling in the seriousness of his condition is clear. Paddy has a very rare form of leukemia that means there are two types of cancer in his system - acute lymphatic and acute myeloid. This makes his battle even harder and he is about to start his first round of aggressive chemotherapy in the coming days.  MPAL is so rare that it makes up only 2-5% of leukemia cases diagnosed.

We are forever grateful for the wonderful treatment and support available from the NHS - however this doesn't cover the expenses of the family or any of the extras that can help to make chemotherapy and beyond more tolerable. For example; my parents are currently travelling into London to be at his side every day as he starts chemotherapy.  At the moment he is confined to a hospital ward and will be for the duration of his chemotherapy, so any creature comforts we can provide him with will help. On this page we will try and be as open as possible about where any donations go - mostly this will be towards travel or treats.

Other ways to support his fight if you can't donate are considering joining the NHS or Anthony Nolan stem cell and bone marrow registers. The possiblity of a transplant has already been discussed and while as his sister I am the closest potential match, this is not guaranteed and the registers may be his next best chance. Also any support into Cancer Research or other charities doing vital work to support those with this illness in Patrick's name would be greatly appreciated. We are aware of how lucky we are to have the support of the NHS on our side, but this is still a rare and relatively unknown form of cancer.

Paddy is a keen photographer and has already been documenting the first few days of life with cancer on his Instagram story and Youtube account. Seemingly overnight his life has changed, his studies are suspended and he has a huge battle ahead of him. Our goals with this page are simple - to fund travel, food and quality of life costs and provide some peace of mind to the family.