Lucia Butler (from Clongeen) PRO for the London Wexford Association presented cheques to the mum, Deborah O’Farrell, with her two children, Ciara, and her brother, Cian.

The London Wexford Association and Noel Swaine, Life-Vice President, have donated a generous amount of money to the O’Farrell family from Wexford in an appreciated show of support for the ‘Cure for Ciara’ fund.

Ciara is an adoring little six-year-old girl who had developed an auto immune disease, called systemic juvenile arthritis, by the time she reached her second birthday.

The money donated will help towards funding for her upcoming treatment in Newcastle Hospital.

Her mother, Deborah O’Farrell, (nee O’Brien), from The Faythe in Wexford town, and her father, Conor O’Farrell from Liam Mellows Park, Wexford, are now residing in Cleariestown.

Little Ciara has 60 joints in her body affected, she has tried various medications, but still remains steroid dependent.

She travels from her home in Wexford to Crumlin Hospital in Dublin every two weeks for a biologic infusion.

Consultants hoped that she will suppress the disease and can be weaned off the steroids, but instead with Ciara, she now gets the highest dose weekly and her steroids have increased.

She has had erosion on her hips, knees, wrists and other joints and her fingers have started to curve as a result of the arthritis.

Her consultants have run out of options for her, so the next step for Ciara is a stem cell transplant in Newcastle, where we will have to stay for up to four months.

Her best friend and her four year old brother, Cian, has a one hundred per cent match and will be her doner.

Ciara’s immune system will be totally wiped out with chemotherapy, so she will be in isolation for a considerable time, and even when she returns home, she won’t be able to fully integrate into crowds until her immune system replenishes itself and that will take about eight months.

She also faces a 10% mortality risk, a chance that she could be 50% infertile, and other health risks, but if she doesn’t have this treatment, she runs the risk of toxicity from long term medication, joint replacements in her early teens, or worse!

Her treatment will happen in 3-4 months’ time.

A fundraising campaign ‘Cure 4 Ciara’ has been established under the umbrella of ICAN (Irish Children’s Arthritis Network) and an Ulster bank account has been set up – sort code 986440, a/c no.12035760.

Full story this week in THE WEXFORD ECHO.