A TRIP to China holds the only hope of sight for a 15-month-old Tuam infant who has been blind since birth, her parents believe.
Amelia Filipczak is the only child of Polish-born parents Justyna and Lukasz who have been living and working in Tuam, Co Galway, for the past four years.
She was born in Galway’s University Hospital in May 2009, and her mother is hoping her sight can be empowered through stem cell treatment at the controversial Beike medical facility in China.
“This is the one hope we have of getting sight for Amelia as they cannot do any surgery on the optic nerves. Only stem cells can help make her optic nerves grow and give her sight,” she said.
The plight of the infant and her parents has inspired some of their friends and neighbours in north Galway to set up a committee to try and raise sufficient funds to send the child to China for the groundbreaking treatment.
“Unfortunately, the cost of the treatment is €50,000 and, as our savings would be only a drop in the ocean, that is why we hope people will help give our daughter a chance of a better life,” says Lukasz.“Stem cell treatment will help Amelia’s eye nerves to grow to a proper size and give her the ability to see.”
A number of other children have also travelled to the Beike medical facility in China from Ireland in recent months.
While there are no guarantees the treatment will make any difference and some scientists have questioned the validity of such interventions, the parents of Dakota Clarke (3) from Belfast claimed last year their daughter can now point to and find objects after the therapy, actions she was previously unable to perform.
This was despite medical tests indicating no improvement in her condition. Her father was angry about a BBC Spotlight documentary called Stem Cell Tourists that tracked his family and suggested the child’s progress was down to a placebo effect.
Amelia is suffering from hypotonia and optic nerve hypoplasia. Her muscle tone is very low and, as her deep reflexes are poor, this will also prevent her from walking on her own.
A local fundraising committee has been set up to help the young couple send their child to China. It is urging people to sent donations to the Amelia Fund, account number 493757, at St Jarlath’s Credit Union, Tuam.
A website is also under construction and will be operational from next week at www.szansa-dla-amelii.pl.