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The mother of a student with a rare condition that prevents her from eating without immediately throwing up says seeing her daughter deteriorate ‘destroys’ her – and that treatment costs £40,000.
Helen Tuck’s, 63, daughter Emma, of Doncaster, South Yorkshire, became ill ‘out of the blue’ three years ago when she developed bilateral kidney stones.
The 22-year-old then developed a kidney infection that was treated with surgery and a course of antibiotics.
However, this treatment killed Emma’s natural gut bacteria and paralyzed her gastrointestinal tract – meaning she can no longer digest her food.
Emma Tucks, from Doncaster, South Yorkshire, became ill ‘out of the blue’ in 2019 when she developed bilateral kidney stones. Pictured with mother Helen, 63, before her health issues
Emma (pictured during one of the many hospitalizations over the past three years) has a rare condition that prevents her from eating without immediately throwing up
Emma’s mother Helen, who has been candid about the impact it has had on her daughter’s life, said: ‘It just devastates me to be honest. She’s young and she’s just one of the nicest kids.
“When I’m not doing well, she still tries to help me, even if I say no.
“We’re very close because she’s 22, but she hasn’t fled the nest and still needs my support.”
Before developing kidney stones, Emma weighed about seven and a half stone — but dropped around two stones, dropping to just five and a half stone after falling ill in 2019.
Although Emma has slowly been able to get her weight back to where it was, her mother says she will lose six pounds quite often if she gets infections.
As a result, Emma is unable to socialize like a normal 22-year-old, as an infection can land her in the hospital for months.
Emma (pictured during her graduation) can’t socialize like a normal 22-year-old because an infection can land her in the hospital for months
Emma got kidney stones ‘out of the blue’ in 2019. Left in the photo before her illness. At home in the picture with her dog
Helen continued: ‘It’s full of worries for her, because she has a lot of drugs and can’t take anything by mouth, I have to crush them for her.
“It’s hard because she just wants to be normal.”
Earlier this year, the family learned of a ‘life-changing’ gastric pacemaker, which would allow Emma to eat normally again.
However, it would cost a whopping £40,000 to have it fitted.
The mother said: ‘When Emma found out about the cost of the treatment, she burst into tears.
“I told her we would do whatever it takes, even if it means closing the house or selling our pensions.
“But Emma disagreed and said it wasn’t right because she said we have to live and our pensions are what we’ve worked for.
Then she asked why an alcoholic can get a liver transplant and someone who smokes a heart transplant.
“She hasn’t done anything wrong in her life and can’t get the treatment she needs.”
Helen is now doing everything she can to raise money for her daughter’s treatment – including setting up a… GoFundMe page and breeding puppies.
She said: ‘We bred one of our dogs in COVID, but you can’t breed them until they’ve had two seasons after that because it’s classified as puppy breeding and that’s not fair.
“She could be bred this year, so we decided to try again to see if we could raise some money and we managed to sell six of them.
Emma’s family tries to raise £40k for a ‘life-changing’ gastric pacemaker. Pictured in hospital with another kidney infection
Before her illness, Emma weighed about 50 kg. Left in the photo on vacation before he got a kidney infection. Pictured on the right during one of her hospital stays after she lost 15kg
“We kept one puppy last time and keeping one when Emma was in hospital seemed like a good idea as she gets a lot of comfort from dogs.
“But I tried to visit Leeds every day while I had a puppy at home that needed a lot of attention, so that was quite a challenge.”
You can donate to Emma’s Go Fund Me here.