Elizabeth Grundy

Chelsea Carter with Elizabeth's Journey

We are raising funds for Elizabeth in the hope that once she is in remission from ALL (Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia), she can access further treatment in the US that could potentially prolong her life and lessen the risk of relapse and other cancers.

Most children with stage four neuroblastoma have a survival rate of 40%, and children with ALL have a survival rate of 80%. There have only ever been four recorded cases of a child with stage 4 neuroblastoma and a second new cancer of ALL, so we are unsure of what the future holds.

Elizabeth was born with stage 4 neuroblastoma, a form of children's cancer. Elizabeth's cancer was in her lung, liver, and kidney. From ten days old until 18 months old, Elizabeth went through chemotherapy, radiation therapy, stem cell harvesting, high-dose chemotherapy, immunotherapy, as well as many scans, X-rays, ultrasounds, blood counts, blood and platelet transfusions—we have lost count—plus over 7 different operations. We were given the all-clear in August of 2018, but then we were hit with another blow. Elizabeth became unwell, and we went to RMCH once again, only to find out our little superhero had bacterial/pneumococcal meningitis/sepsis.

Elizabeth fought like the amazing superhero she truly is and came through it all. Unfortunately, this time Elizabeth lost her hearing in both ears and is now profoundly deaf. I say "unfortunately," but we are extremely lucky, and being deaf has not stopped Elizabeth from achieving everything she wants. Her sign language skills are beyond amazing.

Then, in May of last year, Elizabeth developed a limp and was unwell. After everything she had already been through, we decided a trip to our "second home" was needed just for a check-up. After over two weeks of tests, scans, and lumbar punctures (LPs), we received the dreaded news: Elizabeth had a second cancer. This time, it was ALL (leukemia). Not only was our superhero still in remission from neuroblastoma, but she was now about to begin yet another battle with leukemia—and battle she has, and still is. Elizabeth is now NG-fed again, which means she is fed, and all medication goes through a feeding tube in her nose. She is also using a wheelchair now, due to the chemotherapy and the amount she has had since birth. Elizabeth is currently in the maintenance phase of her treatment with another year to go. We are hopeful that we will get the all-clear and ring the end-of-treatment bell around December 2023, the same year she will celebrate five years of remission from her neuroblastoma and will begin her remission for ALL.

Elizabeth is, has been, and always will be a little superhero. She is truly unbelievable.

Thanks for taking the time to visit my fundraising page.

7.5% of all donations to Tree of Hope in relation to this appeal will be allocated to the general charitable purposes of Tree of Hope to cover our core operating costs.

If we raise insufficient funds, or surplus funds, then the funds will be used, if appropriate, to fund support for our child’s needs in accordance with Tree of Hope’s charitable objects. If in those circumstances we are unable to use all or part of the funds for the benefit of our child in accordance with Tree of Hope’s charitable objectives, then any funds that cannot be used will be transferred to be used for the general charitable purposes of Tree of Hope.