A teenage boy has died at the age of 16 after his battle with muscular dystrophy and his parents say their hearts are "smashed into pieces".
Archie Naughton died in the Mater Hospital in Dublin, Ireland yesterday (July 7) surrounded by his loving family,
His family have paid tribute to an “adored and irreplaceable son” who will be sadly missed by his parents Padraic and Paula, reports Dublin Live.
They also shared the tragic news on their Facebook page, ‘Join Our Boys,’ which provided the public with updates on Archie’s health journey.
“Our beautiful heroic son Archie John has died and our hearts are smashed into millions of pieces. We shall never recover,” the Naughtons wrote.
“We already miss his presence; his warmth; his love; his humour; his tenacity and his infectious beautiful smile.”
The Naughton family have been vocal in the past about their experience with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD), a progressive genetic disease which leads to the loss of skeletal and heart muscle.
The Naughton’s twin sons, 12-year-olds George and Isaac, were diagnosed at the same time as their older brother with the condition in 2012.
Paula and Padraic set up ‘ Join Our Boys ’ last year in a bid to raise vital funds for the care of their three children.
The three boys all required wheelchairs and accessibility in the family’s two storey house was proving incredibly difficult.
The Naughtons had previously spoken about their reluctance to share their children’s stories with the wider world, but the need for the family to move into a more appropriate home required public support.
The average life expectancy for people with DMD ranges from early to mid-twenties, although progress has been made in improving patients’ quality of life in recent years.
Archie’s journey has captured the attention of online audiences through the hashtag #PrayForArchie, with public figures such as Piers Morgan previously urging the teenager to keep on fighting.
His family thanked the staff in the Mater’s Coronary Care Unit for their support throughout Archie’s stay in hospital.
Archie’s funeral will take place on Monday in Roscommon. The family have set up a message page on Rip.ie for people to share condolences to.
They kindly request that people attending the funeral observe social distancing guidelines due to the recent increase in Covid-19 cases and avoid handshakes where possible.
