Huge response to Join Together for Joey campaign

Over €150k has already been raised by the campaign, Join Together for Joey, which aims to help meet the costs of vital surgery for a two-year-old Offaly boy in Chicago.

The phenomenal response arose following the launch of the initiative before Christmas in aid of Joey Conway, son of Natalie (née McCabe) and Tommy, and who was born on August 14, 2021. The fundraising campaign has a target of €330k.

See a video the family have published on Joey's life to date

Joey who is only two years old has had a traumatic time in his short life,

In March, he suffered Invasive Group A Strep (iGAS), and was on a ventilator in the ICU in CHI Crumlin for two weeks.

It was the second serious sepsis infection in his short life.

Joey has been diagnosed with Portal Vein Thrombosis (PVT), which has led to a serious and rare condition Non-cirrhotic Portal Hypertension. Portal Hypertension has life threatening symptoms and the risk of death is 40% on a first episode of bleeding. The bleeding comes from varices that develop in his oesophagus so he will either bleed from his mouth or through his nappies

In August he began his management programme for his condition, which involves going under general anaesthetic for an endoscopy procedure for banding of varices that develop in his oesophagus. This will happen three for four times a year for Joey with no improvement to other symptoms or his condition. This is the only treatment available for Joey in Ireland.

There is a Meso Rex Shunt/Bypass surgery that can be done for Joey. This surgery is available in Chicago and all in will cost €330,000, where we will have to stay anywhere between 8-12 weeks from pre-op to post-op. It is a 5 hour surgery that connects the superior mesenteric vein to the left portal vein using an internal jugular vein. This procedure bypasses the obstruction and restores normal portal flow into the liver. This can restore Joey’s system back to normal function. It would be both life saving and life changing and give him his life back.

The family say the best outcome of the surgery is to operate on a system that has not had any bleeding yet i.e. a system that is not under too much pressure.

"And we are against the clock because the sooner we get this done for Joey we immediately eliminate the threat to his life of bleeding or another septic event. He won't be held back in his development and catch up where he has missed. His spleen will go back to a normal size, where his white blood cells and platelets will go back to normal levels, which his risk of serious infections will reduce and allow him to fight infection normally.

"Without this surgery for Joey, there is a 40% risk of death in the first episode of bleeding.

"Without this surgery he is at risk of a third sepsis episode and nobody knows how the third one would affect his body this time or if he would survive it.

If this surgery is completed in a healthy system (not bleeding) that Joey currently has now, there is a 90% chance of success and restoring Joey’s system and curing him of all other symptoms. Giving Joey this chance now in the next 6 months would change his life forever."

TO DONATE TO THE FUNDRAISER, CLICK HERE