Dean McHugh first noticed something was wrong with his daughter Marnie when he took her to an athletics class. The toddler’s attempt to run made her look like a "wounded soldier", dragging her leg behind.
Dean, 39, immediately booked a doctor's appointment, but it took a while until she received a diagnosis.
After going privately it was found that Marnie had a rare disease called Langerhans cell histiocytosis, which caused an inoperable tumour to grow on her hip socket.
“It's a very rare disease, only one in a million children get it,” says Dean. “There's not too much known about it, some organisations classify it as a cancer and some don’t.”
Marnie, who is described as a bright and chatty four-year-old, began a course of chemotherapy at Great Ormond Street Hospital [GOSH] for six months, which she finished in February.
Marnie lives at home with her parents and her younger brother Jaxon, two, in Leigh-on-sea, Essex.
“It is a brilliant time, now she’s entered the end of treatment but is also a nervous time,” explains Dean. “Because obviously, she's not having weekly blood tests and stuff like that. So she is not being monitored as much.”
Marnie has just finished a course of monthly infusions of bone-strengthening drugs because her bones were weakened by the tumour. However, the youngster has improved a lot. “She can run, there is no stopping her now,” laughs Dean.
In honour of this, and to give back to the organisation that helped her, Dean has also taken up running regularly.
The dad-of-two is training to run the London Marathon for GOSH Charity in October. If he struggles during the race, he will picture his daughter to motivate him to keep on pushing through.
“I just keep thinking that for a three year old to have gone through what she has gone through, it is probably more than most adults will go through in their lifetime,” says Dean. “If she can go through all that, a grown adult should be able to run or walk 26 miles.”
“I'm running it for Great Ormond Street which me and my family have a great affection for and it's such a wonderful place,” Dean adds. “We just want to try and give back and hopefully this is the start of many sort of fundraising activities that we can do on their behalf.
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GOSH Charity raises money to support the hospital’s most urgent needs, including research into pioneering new treatments, cutting-edge medical equipment, support services for children and their families, such as parent accommodation and the hospital’s Play team, and the essential rebuilding and refurbishment of the hospital.
To sponsor Dean please click here.
To register your interest in joining Team GOSH for the 2023 TCS London Marathon click here.
For more information about the charity click here.
