A mum who lost her two sisters to cystic fibrosis has said she hopes a cure is found so her grandson “lives a long life” with the genetic condition.
Jacqui Donnelly, 45, said the invisible illness has devastated her family but revealed treatments have come a long way in the last few years. The healthcare assistant, from Ballyfermot in West Dublin, said her sister Amy was seven when she passed away from CF, while her older sibling Melissa was 25.
Jacqui revealed Melissa’s death was a “real shock” because she lost her life to the condition six months after a double lung transplant. Speaking to the Irish Mirror, Jacqui said: “Amy was seven when she died. She made her Communion in Temple Street Hospital when she was six because they knew she wasn’t going to survive. The hospital put on a fun day for her. She was only tiny when she died. The treatment for cystic fibrosis back then was really bad.”
