Table quiz fundraiser in support of Cillian and Ronan Fund

A table quiz fundraiser in support of the Cillian and Ronan Fund takes place in the Annebrook House Hotel, Mullingar on Friday March 10 (8.30pm).

The minimum team size is four and the cost is €10 per person. There will be spot prizes for participants.

Willie Geraghty is the quiz master.

The Cillian and Ronan O’Keeffe Fund has been set up for 16-month-old identical twins Cillian and Ronan O’Keeffe from Mullingar who have been diagnosed with Mucopolysaccharidosis (MPS 1), also known as Hurler Syndrome.

The boys are in Manchester receiving treatment. Their older brother is being cared for by his grandparents, as their parents, Daniel and Edwina, travelled with Cillian and Ronan to the UK in November last year.

MPS1 is a rare genetic disorder that disrupts the capacity of the body to break down large carbohydrate molecules (CAGs), and as a result they accumulate, leading to a number of complications.

Those can include enlargement of the liver and heart valves, hearing and visual impairment, recurrent upper airway infections, obstruction of the airway leading to breathing difficulties, hernias and skeletal deformities.

Patients with MPS type 1 also have delayed development and progressive cognitive impairment.

Without treatment life expectancy is eight to 10 years.

The Cillian and Ronan Fund has been set up to help the family, and the first step on a long journey starts with chemotherapy and bone marrow transplant. The initial treatments will be carried out in the UK, requiring a nine-month stay at the Royal Children’s Hospital, Manchester.

There is a gofundme page www.cillianandronanfund.ie.

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