Family seeks help to send father to Russian clinic

Eilís Ryan

The family of a 46-year-old father-of-two from Kinnegad are desperately hoping that they can somehow raise the €70,000 they need to get him vital medical treatment at a specialist clinic in Moscow.

Liam Kelleghan has, for the last 18 years, been battling Multiple Sclerosis – a disease his wife Janet describes as a “silent thief”.
“It is slowly stealing Liam’s ability to walk, to do everyday things we take for granted, to play in the park with the children, to work, to live a normal life,” says Janet, adding that Liam is getting progressively worse, and their only real hope lies with the clinic in Russia.
Liam – father to eight-year-old Amy and James, 6, was working as a painter and decorator when he was diagnosed with relapsing remitting MS – but the treatments he was on are no longer working for him.
“Liam is on the line between relapsing, remitting and secondary progressive. If he deteriorates much further his chances of recovery do too,” Janet reveals.
For that reason, the family are pinning their hopes on a programme run at a clinic in Moscow, which has a very high success rate.
“At worst, it should stop Liam’s MS, and at best, it could even reverse it,” says Janet.
The treatment in Russia would involve harvesting Liam’s own stem cells from bone marrow or fat tissue, and then chemo.
“When the chemo has killed his immune system they then transplant the harvested cells back into his body. Treatment takes five to six weeks. His immune system has to restart from scratch and full recovery can take over a year.”
For the duration of the treatment, Liam would have to stay in the clinic, with one week spent entirely in isolation.
While Janet would need to accompany him to Moscow because of the physical difficulties the disease has brought Liam, she won’t be able to stay there because their children are young, and indeed the couple’s son is autistic.
 

Progression

When first diagnosed, the periods of recovery mean that for Liam, life could more or less go on as normal.
However, says Janet, gradually his leg became weaker, leaving him physically unable to continue working as a painter and decorator, so he turned to farming, which would allow him work when able, and rest as he needed to.
“He built up a small herd of cows. The children loved naming the calves and we loved watching them grow,” says Janet.
“The farm barely covered costs, but it kept Liam going and gave him purpose.”
However, as Liam’s condition got worse, the family had to scale back massively, and last year, Liam and Janet made the difficult decision to sell off most of their cattle.
“I helped on the farm as much as I could but Liam could no longer manage,” says Dublin-born Janet.
“We had a few near misses with the cows and for the sake of safety we had to let them go.
“The last one to go on the truck was a pet. She would lick Liam when her calf was born and would follow him round the field.
“Watching the cows go was one of the hardest things we have ever done. This was one of Liam’s lowest days.”
The condition is affecting Liam’s balance; it leaves him fatigued and when he sits or rests for too long, he gets stiff. Trips and falls are becoming a regular thing.
“For Liam it is like having a dead leg,” explains Janet.
“The signals from Liam’s brain get muffled before they reach his leg. So his brain is telling his leg to move but it’s not getting the message.
“His foot is constantly catching on things. He limps and drags his leg.
“His balance is also affected so he has to use a stick and sometimes holds on to walls to try get around.”
For the children, it is difficult too, Janet explains: “The children know daddy has MS and it means he limps and needs a walking stick; he can’t come to the zoo or on any trips if there are stairs or lots of walking.
“He can’t go to the cinema as he gets so stiff he can’t walk back to the car.
“He can’t play football or stand in the garden for long before he needs to sit down. If we go to McDonald’s we have to park close to the door so Daddy doesn’t have to walk too far. Every day things became more and more difficult.”

To make a donation to help Liam and his family, visit the website:
www.gofundme.com/russianrescueforliam