Arthur's fight

$35,326 donated

Given by 1238 generous donors in 8 weeks

Please, let's help this wonderful family while Arthur is being treated for this unknown cause of immense pain, and possible CF.

Nationwide

Arthur is a sweet 5 month old baby, who is currently in Starship hospital (as at 1 Jul 2021, please see page updates for timeline of events since then), with doctors trying to figure out what is wrong with him. He has just spent an awful two weeks in Waikato hospital, deteriorating so much to the point where he has lost so much weight he has gone from being in the 98th centile, to being in just the 1st.

Arthur has aspirated twice - the first time his dad Kane saved his life by getting him back breathing again. The second time was just a few weeks ago which is what ended him up in hospital.

He has been diagnosed with Laryngomalacia, meaning his larynx is floppy. This explains his breathing stopping, as it blocks the airway. This was fixed while in Waikato, however he is still in incredible amounts of pain and is unable to have anymore than 5mls an hour, which is given via an NJ tube into his intestine (which turns out was put in the incorrect place, so he requires another procedure to correct this).

He has severe reflux, and is also going to be tested for Cystic Fibrosis as the Dr's think he may have it.

Arthur cries in absolute agony after his feeds, the cause of this pain is not yet known. The videos I have seen are just heartbreaking.

Due to how much weight he has lost, he has to slowly try gain weight over the next few weeks, before the doctors can investigate further into the cause of this pain. The expected length of his time in Starship is yet unknown.

Arthur's family don't live in Auckland, which causing a number of unexpected expenses being away from home. His dad Kane has been off work since he was first admitted, and they also have a beautiful daughter Emmy (2 1/2) so have had to call on extra help to look after her, while mum Anna is with him in hospital.

Lee - Anne Murray's involvement (page creator)

I am a friend of Anna's, she has helped me alot in the last few months - I would like to try and help her while her family is going through such a hard time

Use of funds

The family will use the funds for expenses incurred traveling back and forth to Auckland and the extra expenses that this incurs.

Anna has said any funds not used will be donated back to Starship Hospital.

Latest update

Update 3/9/2021 3 September 2021

Posted by: Givealittle

Message from page owner, Lee - Anne Murray:

First off, I want to thank everyone that has so kindly donated towards this cause.

There have been some questions as to the use and intention of these donations.

This give a little was set up with the intent of helping the family out while Arthur was in hospital, travel and other expenses incurred during that time. Unfortunately when he was discharged from Starship, he did actually end up being airlifted back there, and has been in and out of Waikato hospital in the past 2 months since the page was set up. Arthur was booked for surgery on the 24th August, which was then canceled and rescheduled to the 31st August. All of the consent forms and paperwork were signed, and then this was again canceled.

Anna and Kane then wondered if they would need to top up their mortgage and pay for this privately, which was when one of the updates said they may need to go privately and this came with a hefty price tag which they were quoted.

No one could see how much this was going going be shared on social media, and by influencers with large followings. There was a page set up on Instagram with the intention of also helping raise money should they need to go private for the surgery.

Anna found out on Friday of last week that private surgery isn't an option due to Arthur's age.

He was then admitted to Waikato again over the weekend due to episodes of him stopping breathing and going blue, which all stems from his severe reflux problems which is the need for surgery.A date has been set for two weeks time, for Arthur to have his surgery done publicly, as his surgeon has said he 100% needs this done asap.

Unfortunately, Anna has now been receiving some really nasty and awful hate filled attention from some people who feel they are no longer deserving of any of these donations, because the surgery is being funded publicly.

Kane has no leave left, and hasn't had for awhile, as being with Anna and Arthur in the hospital in and out for over 4 months has well and truly used that up. This includes sick leave, all gone. They have a mortgage to pay, bills, travel expenses still to cover. Kane hasn't been working full time with everything going on, only 1 or 2 days a week so there is a big drop in income. This family do still need the help and care that I initially set up this page for. The family is unsure how much in total they will need for travel and other expenses during this time but if there is any money leftover, a donation will be made to Starship.

I went through a cancer diagnosis and treatment last year, and I know first hand the struggles and pressure financially that is put on a family in these situations, and I didn't want to see them have to go through that, not when their boy is sick.

We understand if there has been some confusion around the need for funds so if you would prefer to get a refund of your donation, please get in touch with Givealittle at helpdesk@givealittle.co.nz by 4pm Friday 10th September to request a refund.

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