Searching for a cure at any cost
She did request a meal in a fancy restaurant and a preference for her mother to don high heels, but her third aspiration is unlikely to feature on the wish-list of most seven-year-olds.
She wanted her daddy to have hair. As one of the unfortunate side-effects of aggressive chemotherapy treatment, Michael Springate went bald.
The 43-year-old from Newbridge, Co Kildare, was diagnosed last September with sarcoma, a rare form of soft tissue cancer that developed in his lungs despite his being a non-smoker all his life.
The diagnosis brought trauma and turmoil into the lives of Michael, a Wyeth Medica employee, his 39-year-old wife Máire, a teacher, and their two young children, Sadhbh, now eight, and Cian, six.
It forced the family to relocate to the US in search of a cure cancer specialists here were unable to provide.
At a staggering cost of €500,000, the couple was forced to re-mortgage their house and move to New York, while at home, family and friends have unleashed a whirlwind of fundraising events.
Yesterday, Michael’s sister Veronica said his treatment in the US had finally begun, more than a month after the Springates’ arrival stateside.
“His spirits are good, he’s a very positive person, that’s how he’s going to get through this,” she said.
Michael’s treatment will mean he is administered a trial drug unavailable anywhere else in the world, which, if successful, could extend his life significantly.
Máire Springate has set up springatecancertrust.com - a website to appeal for help in saving her husband’s life.
“There’s no price that I’d put on my husband’s life and there’s no price I wouldn’t pay to cure him... I’m too young to become a widow and my children need a father.”
However, the Springates are struggling to meet costs, including accommodation. At home, Veronica has appealed for auction items to help the fundraising efforts.
“A signed Irish soccer or rugby jersey, a golf club owned by some famous Irish golfer, we’re appealing for help from anyone who can,” she said.
The family does not yet know if the Government is in a position to help out. Junior Health Minister Seán Power said they appeared to have the necessary documentation to secure funding from their local health board area, and the request has been made.
A statement from the Health Service Executive South Western Area said yesterday it would be in contact with the family directly once it had had the opportunity to fully consider the application.
In the meantime, fundraisers, which have so far collected €81,000, continue. Máire has faith in her husband’s fighting spirit - his hair grew back for her daughter’s first holy communion - but she needs others to join in the fight against time.
